Humble Backgrounds: Small-College Graduates Coaching DI Playoff Squads
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.
Arkansas' 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 the Final Four nine years ago. Following is an alphabetical list of 2025 NCAA Tournament mentors - including four of the overall top seven seeds - who worked their way up the ladder after graduating from a small college:
2025 NCAA Playoff Coach School Small-College Alma Mater Lennie Acuff Lipscomb Shorter College (Ga.) '88 Dana Altman Oregon Eastern New Mexico '80 Rick Barnes Tennessee Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.) '77 Randy Bennett Saint Mary's UC San Diego '96 Brad Brownell Clemson DePauw (Ind.) '91 John Calipari Arkansas Clarion State (Pa.) '82 Greg Gard Wisconsin Wisconsin-Platteville '95 John Groce Akron Taylor (Ind.) '94 Tom Izzo Michigan State Northern Michigan '77 Chris Jans Mississippi State Loras (Iowa) '91 James Jones Yale Albany (N.Y.) '86 Robert Jones Norfolk State New Paltz State (N.Y.) '01 Tommy Lloyd Arizona Whitman (Wash.) '98 Ben McCollum Drake Northwest Missouri State '03 Ritchie McKay Liberty Seattle Pacific (Wash.) '87 Nate Oats Alabama Maranatha Baptist (Wis.) '97 Ryan Odom Virginia Commonwealth Hampden-Sydney (Va.) '96 Eric Olen UC San Diego Spring Hill (Ala.) '04 T.J. Otzelberger Iowa State Wisconsin-Whitewater '01 Kelvin Sampson Houston Pembroke (N.C.) State '78 Shaka Smart Marquette Kenyon (Ohio) '99 Rodney Terry Texas St. Edward's (Tex.) '90 Brent "Buzz" Williams Texas A&M Oklahoma City '94 Kevin Young Brigham Young Clayton State (Ga.) '04
NOTE: Albany was subsequently classified as an NCAA Division I university.