Winning Ways: Illini Nearly Had Third Instant Success Coach This Century
Most coaches leaving a school on heels of appearing in the NCAA playoffs are bound for a program in turmoil or requiring rehab. But Brad Underwood fell one field goal short of positioning himself to possibly becoming the 15th coach winning at least one NCAA Tournament game in back-to-back seasons with different schools. Underwood's Oklahoma State squad lost, 92-91, against Michigan before he departed for Illinois. His predecessor, John Groce, was the previous coach with this special distinction. 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, Memphis' 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 pit stops. Following is a chronological list of coaches continuing their winning ways in the NCAA playoffs after switching jobs:
| NCAA Playoff Coach | First School (Year/Record) | Second 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) |