NEC Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)
By Joey Loose
10. Dan Hurley – Wagner (2010-2012)
Long before his rise later in the decade, Hurley was a relative unknown when Wagner brought him aboard in 2010. He had spent the last nine years building St. Benedict’s in New Jersey into one of the best high school programs in the country, while he also had experience with Rutgers. Taking over his own college program was a new challenge, but Hurley was up to it.
Hurley only spent two seasons with the Seahawks, but the program clearly took a definite step forward in that time. Wagner won just 13 games in his first season, but it still marked an 8-win improvement. In 2012, the Seahawks won 25 games, which remains the most they’ve ever won in a season at the D1 level. They’d finished second place in the regular season before faltering in the conference tournament.
After that quick turnaround, Hurley bolted for Rhode Island, slowly building the Rams back into an A-10 contender before taking the Connecticut job. Hurley’s rise from high school to the Huskies has been impressive, but it was all possible because of the work he put in at Wagner. There was no guarantee the Seahawks would emerge from their downturn, and Hurley’s 38 wins in those two seasons is evidence he’s a great coach.