Story: AJ Nelson, Senior Staff Writer, HoopDirt.com
BOSTON, MA – The following college basketball coaches have been named recipients of the Week 2 HoopDirt.com Coach of the Week Award, presented by Just Play Solutions. These coaches are now eligible for the HoopDirt.com National Coach of the Year Award, also presented by Just Play Solutions, which will be announced at the end of the 2025-26 college basketball season.
This season marks the eleventh year of the HoopDirt.com Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs. This week’s winners are listed below, followed by all previous weekly honorees from earlier in the season.
To nominate coaches for future weeks, please email [email protected] with your selection(s).
The week 2 winners are:
NCAA D1: Dusty May – University of Michigan
Coach May guided his Wolverines to a historic week at the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas, as Michigan dominated a tough field to claim the title. The then-No. 7 Wolverines opened the tournament on Monday with a matchup against San Diego State and held the Aztecs to just 27% from the field en route a 94-54 drubbing. Back in action the following day, Michigan built a 28-point halftime lead over then-No. 21 Auburn and never looked back, coming away with a 102-72 victory. The win marked the first time since the 1989-90 season that the Wolverines put up 100+ points against a ranked opponent. Facing another ranked foe in then-No. 12 Gonzaga in the title game on Wednesday, Michigan again topped the 100-point plateau in a 101-61 victory, handing the Zags their largest loss since 1990. Following this incredible three-game stretch, the Wolverines jumped up to No. 3 in the latest AP Top-25 Rankings. They return to action on Saturday afternoon, when they open conference play with a home matchup against Rutgers.
NCAA D2: Keffrey Fazio – Seattle Pacific University
Coach Fazio’s Falcons went unbeaten in their Thanksgiving Classic this week, taking down a top-five opponent in the process. In the Classic’s opener on Friday afternoon, Seattle Pacific pulled away from Vanguard in the second half to come away with a 72-53 victory. The victory set up a showdown with 4th-ranked Point Loma, who had knocked the Falcons out of last year’s NCAA Tournament. Seattle Pacific trailed by five at the half, but shot 12-15 from the field (7-8 from three) during a 34-17 run over a 10-minute stretch in the second half to take control of the game and avenge last year’s loss with an 80-73 victory. No. 4 Point Loma was the highest ranked opponent that Coach Fazio’s Falcons have beaten since he took over prior to the 2023-24 season. Now 3-1 on the year, Seattle Pacific will hit the road to take on MSU Billings in their conference opener on Saturday.
NCAA D3: Waleed Farid – New York University
Coach Farid’s Violets headed to the West Coast this past week, winning a pair of games in impressive fashion to remain unbeaten on the campaign. On Wednesday, NYU outrebounded Cal Lutheran 43-25 en route to a 78-63 victory. After the win, the Violets remained in California to take on George Fox on Saturday in a game hosted by Cal Lutheran. NYU recorded a program-record 35 assists in a 105-69 victory. Now 6-0 on the season, the Violets will return to New York to take on Yeshiva in a road matchup on Wednesday night.
NAIA: Tigh Compton – University of Pikeville
Coach Compton led UPike to a trio of double-digit wins this week, including one over a top-10 opponent. The Bears, who received votes in the most recent NAIA Top-25 Poll, opened the week at home on Tuesday, jumping out to a 50-29 halftime lead over Union Commonwealth on the way to a 91-78 triumph. UPike then headed to Kingsport, Tennessee for the NAIA Basketball Showcase “The Show” over the weekend. In Saturday’s matchup with IU-East, the Bears again built a large halftime lead – this time 54-30 – before going on to take a 97-59 victory. Returning to the floor the following day, UPike limited 7th-ranked Life to just 18 second-half points in an impressive 79-51 win. Now winners of seven straight, the Bears will look to improve to 9-2 on the season when they visit Spartanburg Methodist on Saturday.
JUCO: Jerry Nichols – Walters State Community College
Coach Nichols’ high-powered offense was back on display this week, as his Senators scored a combined 138 points across two resounding victories. In the opener of the Carlyle Thanksgiving Classic on Tuesday, No. 17 Walters State shot a ridiculous 56-85 (65.9%) from the field with 40 assists in a 139-67 victory. The Senators had 12 players score and three players record double-doubles in the contest. Walters State stayed hot the following day, shooting 38-62 (61.3%) from the field in a 99-63 win over Georgia Highlands. With the victories, the Senators improved to a perfect 9-0 through the first month of the season. They will look for win No. 10 when they host Chattanooga State Community College on Wednesday.
2025-26 HoopDirt.com / Just Play Solutions Coach of the Week Winners
NCAA DI: Tommy Lloyd – University of Arizona
NCAA DII: Andre Cook – St. Edward’s University
NCAA DIII: Ron Rose – Illinois Wesleyan University
NAIA: Taylor Jarvis – Missouri Baptist University
JUCO: Tae Norwood – Palm Beach State College
About HoopDirt.com
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About Just Play Solutions
Just Play Solutions has become the market leader in coaches’ workflow. A platform to help coaches prepare playbooks, automate scouting reports, research analytics, integrate and distribute video, manage recruiting workflow, and organize recruiting schedules. The end-to-end platform is used by over 700 customers across the country and internationally in football, basketball.
