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

3. Roman Banks – Southern (2011-2017)

Even before he took over the Southern program, Banks had plenty of experience around Louisiana basketball on his resume. He played at Northwestern State and spent time on high school and college staffs around the staff. A former Southern assistant, he had been on the staff at Southeastern Louisiana for eight years when the Jaguars brought him back as head coach in 2011.

During his stretch with the school, Banks had one of the best SWAC programs on his hands. In each of his six seasons, the Jaguars finished in the top 4 in the conference and were even above .500 in all but one season. They made trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2013 and 2016 and won the SWAC regular-season title in 2014. The program was in fantastic shape under Banks’ leadership.

Banks remains with Southern but resigned as head coach in 2017 when he was promoted to athletic director. His hands are still clearly on this Jaguars program, though it’s hard for any first-time head coach to replicate his level of success. Not only did he win 71% of conference games, but he really makes an impact on the legacy of this program and continues to do that in the program’s athletics department.