NCAA Basketball: Ranking all 357 D-I head coaches for 2020-21 season

310. Dave Dickerson (USC Upstate) (Last year: 312)

• Overall record: 87-130

Dickerson’s career has seen its fair share of successes, even if few have come as a head coach himself. He was on the Maryland staff when they won the national title in 2002, and he spent seven solid years on staff at Ohio State thereafter. His 5-year stay leading Tulane went poorly, but USC Upstate did improve by seven wins this past season. Can they build on a 13-win campaign and actually compete in the Big South going forward?

309. Dennis Gates (Cleveland State) (Last year: 336)

• Overall record: 11-21

Gates took over Cleveland State last year after Dennis Felton was fired in the summer, leaving the former Florida State assistant in not the best position. Regardless, Gates put together a competitive roster and won 11 games in his first season, a more than solid effort. Cleveland State has struggled in the Horizon League in recent years, but Gates’s experience and pedigree will certainly have a positive impact going forward for the Vikings.

308. Tommy Dempsey (Binghamton) (Last year: 302)

• Overall record: 186-285

Binghamton is nearly two decades into his head coaching career, though things have stalled for him a bit since taking over at Binghamton. He spent seven years leading Rider before taking over these Bearcats in 2012. Dempsey hasn’t led a team to the NCAA Tournament and has yet to finish higher than 6th in the America East in his first eight seasons.

307. Eric Olen (UC San Diego) (Last year: N/A)

• Overall record: 0-0

Olen has spent his entire coaching career as an assistant and then head coach at UC San Diego, who transition to D1 for this season. Olen won 159 games in his first seven years as head coach and likely had one of the favorites for the D2 title last season had the pandemic not canceled the postseason. He built this program up at the D2 level, but can he do the same in the Big West at the D1 level?

306. Pat Baldwin (Milwaukee) (Last year: 283)

• Overall record: 37-58

Baldwin bounced around as an assistant, spending time at Loyola and Northwestern among others, before taking over Milwaukee three seasons ago. Unfortunately, he’s yet to make a big impact with the Panthers, winning just 9 and 12 games in his last two seasons. He’s a great recruiter, and there’s still time to turn things around, but former coach Rob Jeter was fired for winning at a much higher rate, surely Baldwin’s time will run out without immediate improvement.

305. Juan Dixon (Coppin State) (Last year: 317)

• Overall record: 24-72

After leading Maryland to the national championship in 2002, Dixon engaged in a long playing career before joining Coppin State as head coach. His work seemingly not done in the state of Maryland, he’s made progress with the Eagles, leading them to 11 wins this past season, their most since 2013. If he keeps building up this team, he could have a MEAC title-winning team in the years to come.

304. Duggar Baucom (The Citadel) (Last year: 299)

• Overall record: 202-265

Baucom spent a decade leading VMI before shifting over to The Citadel for the last five seasons. He’s known for his run-and-gun offense, though that hasn’t particularly led to winning culture, as his Bulldogs were winless in SoCon play this past season. Whether or not he can get things back on track with The Citadel, Baucom does have a long resume and has done some pretty solid work at military institutes.

303. Brian Earl (Cornell) (Last year: 294)

• Overall record: 42-73

A few spots higher than brother Dan at VMI, Earl’s basketball acumen came from his time at Princeton, playing and later serving on the staffs of several different coaches, including the legendary Pete Carril. His work at Cornell hasn’t been awful, but this past season was a step back, as the Big Red won just 7 games and finished in 7th in the Ivy, the worst season during Earl’s tenure.

302. Pat Duquette (UMass Lowell) (Last year: 296)

• Overall record: 84-127

A former longtime assistant under Al Skinner at Boston College, Duquette was tasked with winning in Lowell as the River Hawks joined D1 the same time he was hired in 2013. The results have been consistent, averaging around 12 wins and a 5th or 6th place finish in the America East each year. There’s progress to be made in the future, though it’s hard to say Duquette has been a disappointment to this point.

301. Tony Pujol (North Alabama) (Last year: 306)

• Overall record: 23-39

As North Alabama joined D1 in 2018, they brought Pujol aboard to help make a quick impact with the program. The former VCU and Alabama assistant has had his work cut out for him, but is slowly making strides with the Lions. This past season ended with 13 wins and a 5th place finish in the Atlantic Sun, both good signs for North Alabama. The question remains if they can push to that next level in the coming seasons and come close to competing with Liberty.

300. Wayne Brent (Jackson State) (Last year: 313)

• Overall record: 96-131

Brent spent years as a high school coach and was briefly on staff at Ole Miss, but Jackson State handed him his first college head coaching job seven years ago. He’s yet to lead the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament but has finished in the top 4 of the SWAC in four of the last five seasons. A 20-win campaign in 2016 is the clear highlight, but 15 wins last year isn’t bad either, perhaps the continuation of an uphill trend.

299. Jason Shay (East Tennessee State) (Last year: N/A)

• Overall record: 0-0

After spending five seasons on staff, Shay inherited a Buccaneers program that he helped Steve Forbes build into great shape. Before taking his first head coaching job, Shay had previously spent a decade under Bruce Pearl, including six years in the SEC at nearby Tennessee. With his experience and proficiency, he’s the perfect candidate to keep building success at East Tennessee State.

298. Mike Morrell (UNC Asheville) (Last year: 310)

• Overall record: 19-43

Morrell took the UNC Asheville job two seasons ago, having spent the last seven years with Shaka Smart at VCU and Texas. The Bulldogs won just four games in his debut, a clear rebuilding year, but bounced back with a 15-16 campaign this past season. UNC Asheville is trending in the right direction again, and competing for a Big South title seems like a worthy challenge for a young coach like Morrell.

297. Paul Sather (North Dakota) (Last year: 315)

• Overall record: 15-18

After taking Northern State to the D2 title game, Sather got his first D1 head coaching job when North Dakota hired him last season. Although briefly a member of the Colorado coaching staff, this was Sather’s first real hands-on experience at D1 and things went pretty well, leading the Fighting Hawks to a 15-win campaign that marked definite improvement.

296. Michael Fly (Florida Gulf Coast) (Last year: 250)

• Overall record: 24-40

A former aide to USC head coach Andy Enfield, Fly spent seven years on the Eagles staff before becoming head coach in 2018. He was present when Florida Gulf Coast made that surprising Sweet Sixteen run in 2013, but his time leading the program has been far less successful. The Eagles won just 10 games this past season and are certainly trending in the wrong direction, finishing tied for sixth in the Atlantic Sun as well.

295. Jared Grasso (Bryant) (Last year: 304)

• Overall record: 26-59

Grasso arrived at Bryant in 2018 with plenty of experience on coaching staffs in and around New England. While his record is plummeted by a rough stretch as interim head coach at Fordham, he was Tim Cluess’s right-hand man at Iona for eight years and just led Bryant to a five-win improvement in this second season. There’s still work ahead, but he could have the Bulldogs headed to their first NEC title in the coming years.

294. Brian Katz (Sacramento State) (Last year: 293)

• Overall record: 142-220

After a long career at the junior college level, Katz landed in Sacramento in 2008 and is still trying to lead the Hornets to the NCAA Tournament. There has absolutely been progress, and this past season’s 16-win effort marks his second-most during his tenure. However, Sacramento State hasn’t been higher than 7th in the Big Sky in the last five years and is fighting an uphill battle to compete with teams like Montana and Eastern Washington.

293. Anthony Stewart (Tennessee-Martin) (Last year: 258)

• Overall record: 53-73

Stewart bounced around a bit in his coaching career before seemingly finding a home with the Skyhawks. He had served under Heath Schroyer, who he also assisted at Wyoming, before taking over the program four years ago. However, things are going in the wrong direction for Stewart, whose 9-20 mark last year is a stark contrast to a 22-win debut.

292. Greg Gary (Mercer) (Last year: 303)

• Overall record: 33-59

Gary took over Mercer this past year after an 8-year run on Matt Painter’s staff at Purdue. This wasn’t Gary’s first D1 head coaching experience, as he spent two years at Centenary before they reclassified back down. Fortunately, a 17-win debut with the Bulldogs is a great sign, and as Gary brings his own guys into the program things should only look up, even in a tough mid-major league like the SoCon.

291. George Ivory (Arkansas-Pine Bluff) (Last year: 269)

• Overall record: 136-248

With plenty of SWAC experience under his belt, Ivory is already entering his thirteenth season leading Arkansas-Pine Bluff. His work with the Golden Lions has been up and down, highlighted by an NCAA Tournament bid way back in 2010. However, he just had his worst season at the program, winning just 4 games and tying for last place in the SWAC; though things could still turn around again.