Training Ground: K-State Joins Idaho and Penn in Losing Seven Head Coaches

The departure of Frank Martin to South Carolina had Kansas State join Idaho and Penn as schools losing the most head coaches, seven, over the years to other major colleges or the NBA.

South Carolina hasn't won an NCAA Tournament game since 1973 under legendary coach Frank McGuire. But Martin, the fourth K-State mentor to abandon ship in the last 23 years, aspires to duplicate the success enjoyed by his three most recent K-State predecessors - Lon Kruger, Dana Altman and Bob Huggins. Kruger guided Florida to the Final Four, Altman became Creighton's all-time winningest coach and Huggins directed his alma mater (West Virginia) to the Final Four.

Incredibly, Tulsa lost four coaches in a seven-year span from 1995 to 2001. The following lists show Idaho (11 years from 1983 to 1993) and Penn (15 years from 1971 to 1985) losing four coaches in significantly shorter spans than Kansas State:

Idaho - Dave MacMillan (left for Minnesota/1927), Dave Strack (Michigan/1960), Joe Cipriano (Nebraska/1963), Don Monson (Oregon/1983), Tim Floyd (New Orleans/1988), Kermit Davis (Texas A&M/1990), Larry Eustachy (Utah State/1993)

Kansas State - Jack Gardner (Utah/1953), Tex Winter (Washington/1968), Cotton Fitzsimmons (Phoenix Suns/1970), Lon Kruger (Florida/1990), Dana Altman (Creighton/1994), Bob Huggins (West Virginia/2008), Frank Martin (South Carolina/2012)

Penn - Howie Dallmar (Stanford/1954), Jack McCloskey (Wake Forest/1966), Dick Harter (Oregon/1971), Chuck Daly (assistant with Philadelphia 76ers/1977), Bob Weinhauer (Arizona State/1982), Craig Littlepage (Rutgers/1985), Fran Dunphy (Temple/2006)