Winning Ways: Coaches Succeeding Right Away in NCAA Anything but Gross
Most coaches leaving a school that just appeared in the NCAA playoffs are bound for a program in turmoil or requiring rehab. Illinois' John Groce became only the 14th coach to win at least one NCAA Tournament game in back-to-back seasons with different schools. But Groce wasn't the first coach so far this century to enjoy immediate promising tourney results with the Illini. Kansas' Bill Self, the only individual to achieve the feat twice, is the lone mentor to reach a regional final in back-to-back seasons with two different schools (Tulsa in 2000 and Illinois in 2001).
Tippy Dye (Ohio State in 1950 and Washington in 1951) went 35 years as the only coach in this category until Eddie Sutton duplicated the achievement (Arkansas in 1985 and Kentucky in 1986). Similar to Self, Minnesota's Tubby Smith (Tulsa in 1995 and Georgia in 1996) and Ohio State's Thad Matta (Butler in 2001 and Xavier in 2002) achieved the feat at previous pitstops. Following is a chronological list of coaches continuing their winning ways in the NCAA playoffs after switching jobs:
| Playoff Coach | 1st School (Year/Record) | 2nd School (Year/Record) |
|---|---|---|
| Tippy Dye | Ohio State (1950/1-1) | Washington (1951/2-1) |
| Eddie Sutton | Arkansas (1985/1-1) | Kentucky (1986/3-1) |
| Paul Evans | Navy (1986/3-1) | Pittsburgh (1987/1-1) |
| Tom Penders | Rhode Island (1988/2-1) | Texas (1989/1-1) |
| Tubby Smith | Tulsa (1995/2-1) | Georgia (1996/2-1) |
| Ben Braun | Eastern Michigan (1996/1-1) | California (1997/2-1) |
| Steve Robinson | Tulsa (1997/1-1) | Florida State (1998/1-1) |
| Bill Self | Tulsa (2000/3-1) | Illinois (2001/3-1) |
| Thad Matta | Butler (2001/1-1) | Xavier (2002/1-1) |
| Bill Self | Illinois (2003/1-1) | Kansas (2004/3-1) |
| Roy Williams | Kansas (2003/5-1) | North Carolina (2004/1-1) |
| Bruce Pearl | Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2005/2-1) | Tennessee (2006/1-1) |
| Trent Johnson | Stanford (2008/2-1) | Louisiana State (2009/1-1) |
| John Calipari | Memphis (2009/2-1) | Kentucky (2010/3-1) |
| John Groce | Ohio University (2012/2-1) | Illinois (2013/1-1) |