15. Danny Sprinkle (Washington)
Seven years ago, Sprinkle was an assistant at Cal State Fullerton and had been working on staffs at west coast schools for two decades. What transpired was a stunning rise, as he took his alma mater Montana State to a pair of NCAA Tournaments before orchestrating an incredible campaign at Utah State back in 2024. He arrived in Seattle just as the Huskies transitioned into the Big Ten.
Unfortunately, that transition hasn’t exactly been easy. Washington as a program has not been in great shape in recent years and a last place finish in their debut season wasn’t the best start. Sprinkle’s squad took a slight step forward this past year with 16 wins and a tie in 12th place but it’s hard to get super excited over a 29-35 record through two years.
Sprinkle had individual seasons at both Montana State and Utah State that nearly matched that two-year total, but winning in the Big Ten is clearly a different animal. There’s no telling how much rope he’ll be given with the Huskies especially during this rough transition into a conference that’s a geographic disaster. He’s built great teams; we’ll just have to see if that can actually translate at the power conference level.
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