Humble Backgrounds: Small-College Grads Make Major NCAA Tourney News

March 17th, 2014 - 20:33

In a caste-like era separating the haves from the have-nots, imperial universities are seeking mega-conferences and, perhaps in the near future, a restrictive upper division. But the socially elite won't ever be able to exclude small schools from making a big impact on the NCAA playoffs.

Smaller colleges, many of them in the hinterlands, have supplied a striking number of the biggest names in coaching. From 1995 through 2000, five of the six NCAA Tournament championship coaches (Jim Calhoun, Jim Harrick, Tom Izzo, Lute Olson and Tubby Smith) graduated from obscure colleges with smaller enrollments. In fact, it is a rarity for a Final Four not to feature at least one coach who graduated from a non-Division I school.

John Calipari, a graduate of Clarion (Pa.) State, guided Kentucky to the 2012 national championship before Michigan's John Beilein (Wheeling Jesuit, NY) and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall (Randolph-Macon VA) directed teams to last year's Final Four. Following is an alphabetical list of 2014 NCAA Tournament mentors who worked their way up the ladder after graduating from a small school:

NCAA Playoff Coach School Small-College Alma Mater
Dana Altman Oregon Eastern New Mexico '80
Rick Barnes Texas Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.) '77
John Beilein Michigan Wheeling Jesuit (N.Y.) '75
Will Brown Albany Dowling (N.Y.) '95
John Calipari Kentucky Clarion (Pa.) State '82
Joe Callero Cal Poly Central Washington '86
Ed Cooley Providence Stonehill (Mass.) '94
Steve Fisher San Diego State Illinois State '67
Bob Hoffman Mercer Oklahoma Baptist '79
Tom Izzo Michigan State Northern Michigan '77
Rob Jeter Milwaukee Wisconsin-Platteville '91
Mike Lonergan George Washington Catholic (D.C.) '88
Gregg Marshall Wichita State Randolph-Macon (Va.) '85
Phil Martelli Saint Joseph's Widener (Pa.) '77
Tim Miles Nebraska Mary (N.D.) '89
Saul Phillips North Dakota State Wisconsin-Platteville '96
Randy Rahe Weber State Buena Vista (Colo.) '82
Monte' Ross Delaware Winston-Salem (N.C.) State '92
William "Bo" Ryan Wisconsin Wilkes College (Pa.) '69
Herb Sendek North Carolina State Carnegie-Mellon (Pa.) '85
Shaka Smart Virginia Commonwealth Kenyon (Ohio) '99
Mike Young Wofford Emory & Henry (Va.) '86

NOTE: Illinois State is now classified as an NCAA Division I university.