NCAA Basketball rewind: Most impactful coaching hires after 2013 season

By Joey Loose | Jun 25, 2021

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 18: Head coach Brad Underwood of the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks reacts in the first half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the first round of the 2016 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Barclays Center on March 18, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

3 of 11

NCAA Basketball Joe Dooley Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***Joe Dooley”n /

9. Joe Dooley (Florida Gulf Coast)

Coming off a surprise run to the Sweet Sixteen, you could say that Florida Gulf Coast was already in remarkably solid shape. The Eagles shocked the basketball world with that miraculous run, but following it up would not be easy. With coach Andy Enfield changing coasts to take over USC, the Eagles needed a new voice; someone who would make sure this wasn’t just a one year surge for the program.

Joe Dooley already had a large helping of coaching experience, far more than even Enfield had before he took over the program. Dooley had been an assistant at schools like South Carolina and New Mexico, while also spending four years as head coach at East Carolina. His last ten years had been spent on Bill Self’s coaching staff at Kansas; he helped lead the Jayhawks to the national championship back in 2008. Dooley was more than ready for another head coaching venture.

Sure enough, Dooley helped sustain that success for Florida Gulf Coast. In each of his five seasons, the Eagles won at least 21 games and finished in the top 2 of the A-Sun. Every season ended in a postseason bid, including two more trips to the NCAA Tournament. After winning 66% of his games, very impressive for an A-Sun school, Dooley accepted the challenge to take over the East Carolina program again, while his successor has failed to maintain the Eagles’ relevance.

Home/NCAA Basketball News