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

2. Rob Spivery – Alabama State (2000-2005), Southern (2005-2011)

Spivery did some fantastic work at multiple schools during his coaching career, but is a bit unique in making a positive impact on multiple SWAC schools. He played and coached at the D2 level before Alabama State hired him in 1996, though he also spent time at schools like Southern Illinois and Tulsa as an assistant. His work began slow with the Hornets, but things were going well by the turn of the century.

Spivery led Alabama State to their first two trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2001 and 2004. In each of his final five seasons with the Hornets, they won at least 11 conference games and were finally making a real impact in the conference. He departed for Southern in 2005 and made an immediate impact, leading the Jaguars to a SWAC title and NCAA Tournament bid of their own in 2006.

While things ended poorly during his further years at Southern, Spivery made a certain impact on both programs. Leading two different SWAC teams to conference titles in a span of three seasons is an impressive feat, and Spivery absolutely provided a breakthrough for Alabama State. Even if he didn’t win enough games at the end at Southern, he did lead them to their first Tournament in thirteen seasons.