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20 coaches on the rise entering the 2023-24 college basketball season

It’s never too early to start looking ahead to the upcoming year!

Check below for our list of 20 head coaches on the rise entering the 2023-24 college basketball season.

This list does not include coaches from both the Atlantic 10 and Mountain West.

In no particular order:

Tobin Anderson, Iona: After winning 77.1 percent of his games as a Division II head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas, Anderson engineered the greatest upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament last March when he led Fairleigh Dickinson to a win over top-seeded Purdue. A brilliant offensive mind, Anderson should flourish in his new post at Iona. Another thing to remember: This is the first job that Anderson has had as a head coach with legitimate resources and support. 

Mike Morrell, UNC Asheville: The 40-year old Morrell has quietly done one of the best rebuilding jobs in mid-major basketball over the past five years. After winning just four games in his first season during the 2018-19 campaign, Morrell led the Bulldogs to 27 wins and an NCAA Tournament appearance last spring. With versatile big man Drew Pember back for another year, UNC Asheville will again be the team to beat in the Big South.

Joe Pasternack, UC Santa Barbara: Are the Gauchos on the verge of becoming the next Saint Mary’s? Don’t rule it out of the realm of possibility. The fiery Pasternack has led UC Santa Barbara to two NCAA Tournament appearances in the last three seasons while averaging 22 wins each year that he’s been the Gauchos’ head coach. This program only won six games in the season prior to Pasternack’s arrival and is now regularly mentioned as one of the top mid-major programs in the sport. 

Speedy Claxton, Hofstra: The world knew that Claxton could play basketball at a very high level, but nobody knew for sure how he’d be as a head coach. They do now. 46 wins in his first two seasons as the head coach of  his alma mater has been mightily impressive, especially when you consider the fact that Hofstra won a share of the CAA regular season title last season.

Pat Kelsey, Charleston: Kelsey was rewarded with a long-term contract extension last March after leading the Cougars to a 31-4 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance. He’s now been the steward of two different programs — Charleston and Winthrop — who have heard their names called on Selection Sunday. It would take a special opportunity to get Kelsey to leave Charleston, who is quickly becoming one of the trendier mid-major programs in America. 

Jerrod Calhoun, Youngstown State: Some people aren’t overly flashy, but they just get the job done. That’s Calhoun in a nutshell. After leading Fairmont State (Division II) to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances, Calhoun has gradually built the Penguins into a quality program in the Horizon League. Youngstown State has had four straight winning seasons under Calhoun, highlighted by last year’s regular season title and Postseason NIT appearance. If a higher level AD wants to rebuild a program with old fashioned grit and toughness, they’d be wise to call Calhoun. 

Stan Johnson, Loyola Marymount: Johnson received interest from power conference programs last spring after he led the Lions to a 19-win season, which was highlighted by victories over three teams — Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, and Nevada — who reached the NCAA Tournament. Loyola Marymount also had wins a year ago over both Wake Forest and Georgetown. An elite communicator and quality recruiter, Johnson has also proven that he’s a high level coach. The trajectory is upward. 

Matt Langel, Colgate: Langel is a joke. Over the last five years, he’s 71-13 in Patriot League regular season games and has taken Colgate to four NCAA Tournaments during that span. That’s not an easy thing to do in Hamilton, New York. While he just signed a long-term contract extension, Langel — who’s an elite offensive coach — always has the potential to move because of his ability to X and O. 

James Jones, Yale: After leading the Bulldogs to their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2016, Jones has quietly built Yale into one of the Ivy League’s flagship programs. In the last eight years, the Bulldogs have won at least a share of the Ivy League regular season title five times and finished no worse than third in the other three seasons. That’s because of Jones, who hasn’t gotten the type of attention from power conference programs that he deserves if you take a deep dive into his resume.

Dedrique Taylor, Cal State Fullerton: Posting back-to-back 20-win seasons at any job is difficult, let alone one that has the challenges of a post like Cal State Fullerton. That hasn’t stopped Taylor. During his tenure with the Titans, Taylor has led this program to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances and 41 wins over the last two years. This guy would be a tremendous candidate for any opening that could be on the horizon in either the Mountain West or WCC. 

Takayo Siddle, UNCW: Siddle has led the Seahawks to back-to-back appearances in the CAA Tournament title game and a combined 51 wins during that span. Don’t be shocked if UNC Wilmington finally breaks through in 2024 as its top three scorers from a year ago — Trazarien White, Maleeck Harden-Hayes, and Shykeim Phillips — are back. Siddle could be on the verge of coaching one of college basketball’s top mid-majors during the 2023-24 season. 

Mitch Henderson, Princeton: The Tigers were the first Ivy League program since Cornell in 2010 to advance to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, but Henderson isn’t satisfied. Under his watch, his alma mater has won at least 22 games in four of the last seven seasons, which was highlighted by wins last spring during March Madness over Arizona and Missouri. Henderson could either stay at Princeton for the rest of his head coaching career or be an interesting hire for a power conference program. 

Robert Jones, Norfolk State: A bitter loss to Howard in last season’s MEAC Tournament title game can’t take away from the tremendous job that Jones has done in building the Spartans’ program. In the last five years, Norfolk State has averaged 20.2 wins and played in two NCAA Tournaments and one Postseason NIT. Jones is quietly one of the best program builders on the East Coast. 

Bob Richey, Furman: Richey had opportunities to leave Furman last spring after an NCAA Tournament win over Virginia, but opted to stay put and wait for the right opportunity. This guy was a high-level coach before he won an NCAA Tournament game, as evidenced by the upset that he engineered at Villanova in November of 2018. An excellent offensive coach, the Paladins have averaged over 77 points in each of the past three seasons. 

Darian Devries, Drake: DeVries has averaged a whopping 24.4 wins during his five-year tenure with the Bulldogs, which has also included four postseason appearances and two trips to the NCAA Tournament. DeVries also boasts an impressive 63-29 mark in Missouri Valley regular season games during his career. This guy is a high-major coach in a mid-major conference. 

Kenny Blakeney, Howard: This program was just 4-29 during the 2019-20 season, but wound up playing in the 2023 NCAA Tournament. That’s all a credit to Blakeney and his vision. A former player at Duke and assistant under Tommy Amaker at Harvard, Blakeney has elite people skills and is a tremendous evaluator. If Howard can continue to have success, this guy would be instantly transportable to a higher level. 

Darris Nichols, Radford: A standout player at West Virginia, Nichols was an assistant coach under Mike White at both Louisiana Tech and Florida before running his own program. After tallying 21 wins a year ago in his second season as a head coach, Nichols now has Radford firmly on the map in the Big South. Keep an eye on this guy if the Highlanders make the 2024 NCAA Tournament. 

Bart Lundy, Milwaukee: Lundy cut his teeth as a Division II head coach, but has quickly made an impact in Division I. The 51-year old head coach led Milwaukee to 22 wins a year ago in first season with the Panthers and should be firmly in the mix at the top of the Horizon League in 2023-24. Lundy also has a power conference background, as he was a part of Buzz Williams’ staff at Marquette from 2009-12.

Richie Riley, South Alabama: Riley’s innovative recruiting philosophy allowed him to be ahead of the curve prior to the launch of the transfer portal. It also makes him capable of rebuilding a program at any level. If the Jags can break through and make the NCAA Tournament — especially after nearly reaching the event last season before falling to Louisiana in the Sun Belt Tournament title game — Riley’s star will only continue to rise. 

Bucky McMillan, Samford: Four years ago, McMillan was a high school coach. Four years from now, he could be roaming the sidelines in a power conference. The 40-year old McMillan has posted back-to-back 21 win seasons and is on the verge of breaking through at Samford. He’ll get an opportunity on Nov. 6th as the Bulldogs open the 2023-24 season at Mackey Arena against Purdue.

Leftovers