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

By Joey Loose | Jul 22, 2020

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 21: The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights huddle before taking on the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the first half in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament dat Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 21, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

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CINCINNATI, OH – JANUARY 30: Head coach Mike Rice (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

2. Mike Rice – Robert Morris (2007-2010)

Before Rice got his shot as head coach, he made his way around, picking up valuable coaching experience as an assistant at many schools. He started off at Fordham, his alma mater, while also spending time at places like Saint Joseph’s, Marquette, and Pittsburgh. He was plucked from that Panthers staff in 2007 when Robert Morris hired him, and the results were immediate.

Building off what predecessor Mark Schmidt had begun to build, the Colonials dominated the NEC during his tenure. In all three seasons, they won the regular-season title, making a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances in 2009 and 2010. During this stretch, Rice led the program to 73 wins and won over 85% of conference games, a mind-boggling number.

We praise Rice for what he did in those three years at Robert Morris because what followed makes us all uneasy. He spent the next three seasons at Rutgers before he was fired for verbally and physically abusing his players. He has not returned to collegiate coaching. It ended poorly for Rice, but what’s clear is that everything came together for him with the Colonials, thus his spot on this list is well-deserved.