Atlantic 10 Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)

By Joey Loose | Jul 18, 2020

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 12: A general view of the Barclay Center prior to the start of the 2020 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Tournament - Second Round on March 12, 2020 in the Brooklyn Borough of New York City. Tournament games will be played without fans amid growing concerns of the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 24: Head coach Fran Dunphy of the Temple Owls (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

4. Fran Dunphy – Temple (2006-2013)

After bouncing around as an assistant, including at La Salle, his alma mater, Dunphy got his head coaching career started over three decades ago with Penn in the Ivy League. His work with the Quakers was simply phenomenal, leading them to nine NCAA Tournaments in just 17 seasons in charge. Temple came calling in 2006, having not made the NCAA Tournaments for five years, though Dunphy would quickly turn things around.

Under his leadership, Temple became a conference champion once again and made six straight NCAA Tournaments. After a rough first season, the Owls would finish top 3 each of the next six seasons and even won a pair of Tournament games as well. Before they exited the Atlantic 10, Dunphy had won at least 24 games in his last four seasons and had a pair of regular-season crowns as well.

Temple and Dunphy exited for the AAC in 2013, where things were slightly less explosive before his retirement six years later. He’s not responsible for some marvelous postseason run or unforgettable moment, but Dunphy did bring consistency and a winning pedigree to both programs he touched in his career. The Owls excelled and outgrew the Atlantic 10 and Dunphy is a big reason why.

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