NCAA Basketball: Top 10 impact head coaching hires from 2006

By Joey Loose | Jun 7, 2021

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 01: Head coach Mick Cronin of the Cincinnati Bearcats gestures to his players during their game against the UNLV Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center on December 01, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Bearcats defeated the Rebels 65-61. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

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NCAA Basketball Fran Dunphy Temple Owls (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

5. Fran Dunphy (Temple)

Under legendary head coach John Chaney, Temple was a fantastic basketball program near the end of the 20th century. His final five seasons weren’t bad, but the Owls were a shell of their former self and hadn’t made an NCAA Tournament since 2001. New blood was needed as Chaney stepped aside, especially to make this program a national contender again.

Temple turned to Fran Dunphy, who had some pretty impressive experience already in the Philadelphia area. A former assistant at schools like Army and La Salle, he had spent the last 17 years as the head coach at Penn, all the while dominating the Ivy League. During that time, Dunphy led the Quakers to nine NCAA Tournaments and built the model of consistency, something Owls fans hoped he’d achieve at Temple.

The Owls were not exactly a national power, but Dunphy did achieve that consistency with the program. In his thirteen seasons, he took Temple to eight NCAA Tournaments, but they won just two games in those Tourneys. Still, this was one of the best programs in a tough A-10 before transitioning to the AAC in 2013. Dunphy had a great impact, especially considering how they’ve struggled since his retirement.

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