Darian DeVries, who led Drake to six consecutive 20-win seasons and has a career .732 winning percentage as a head coach, has been named the 23rd head men’s basketball coach at West Virginia University, Vice President and Director of Athletics Wren Baker announced today.
“Coach DeVries is a phenomenal basketball coach and an even better person and possesses all the qualities we desired in the next leader of our men’s basketball program,” Baker said. “His teams play hard and smart and are efficient on both ends of the floor. He has proven to be a strong recruiter and developer of players but even more importantly, a leader with integrity who develops character in the young men he coaches.
“I know that he and his wife, Ashley, and their children, Tucker and Tatum, will love and embrace West Virginians and West Virginians will love and embrace them. On behalf of the Mountaineer family, I want to welcome the DeVries family to Morgantown.”
DeVries spent the last six seasons at Drake, leading the Bulldogs to three Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) titles (two tournament and one regular season) and three NCAA Tournament appearances. His record is 150-55 (.732) in six seasons as a head coach, including a 55-15 (.786) mark in the last two seasons. DeVries posted a 78-33 (.703) record in the MVC.
DeVries was hired at Drake prior to the 2018-19 season and led the Bulldogs to six of the 11 20-wins seasons in program history.
DeVries agreed to a five-year deal with West Virginia University.
“I’m honored to lead this historic program which has an outstanding tradition and passionate fanbase,” DeVries said. “Gamedays in the WVU Coliseum are legendary, and the incredible support for Mountaineer Basketball is known nationwide. I look forward to building on the success of the program.
“I would like to thank President Gee and Wren Baker for extending me this wonderful opportunity. My family and I are honored and thrilled to be a part of Mountaineer Nation. We have heard so many great things about West Virginia and its people, and we can’t wait to get there.”
This past season, DeVries led Drake to a 28-7 record, capping the season with a MVC Tournament title and the Bulldogs’ third NCAA Tournament appearance in the last four years. Drake’s 28 victories this season are its most since recording 28 in 2008.
DeVries, a two-time MVC Coach of the Year (2019 and 2021), is a finalist for this year’s Hugh Durham National Coach of the Year Award, given annually to the top mid-major head coach in college basketball.
In his first season as head coach at Drake, DeVries led the Bulldogs to a 24-10 record after inheriting a team with the second-fewest returning letterwinners in the nation. He led the Bulldogs to their first regular season MVC title since 2008 and the program’s 12th all-time postseason appearance, despite losing a potential MVC Player of the Year candidate to a season-ending knee injury in the first game of conference play. In his first season as a head coach, he was named MVC Coach of the Year and received the Hugh Durham National Coach of the Year Award.
DeVries made history in his second season at Drake, becoming the first coach to lead an eight seed to a win over the top seed in the MVC Tournament, downing Northern Iowa, 77-56. The 2020 postseason was canceled after the UNI victory due to COVID-19. His Bulldogs won 20 games, marking the first time since 1971 the program had won 20 or more games in consecutive seasons.
In his third year, DeVries led Drake to an 18-0 start and an AP Top 25 appearance. Despite losing two of his top players to injury, he led Drake to its first at-large NCAA Tournament bid in years, and its first NCAA Tournament win in 50 years over Wichita State. He was named MVC Coach of the Year for the second time in three years. Drake finished the season with a 26-5 record.
After leading Drake to 25 victories in 2021-22 and a CBI quarterfinal appearance, DeVries led the Bulldogs back to the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23 and finished with a 27-8 record. Drake captured the 2023 MVC Tournament title for the first time under DeVries.
Prior to Drake, DeVries was an assistant coach at Creighton for 17 years under Greg McDermott and Dana Altman. He joined Creighton as a graduate manager and spent 20 years at Creighton. During his time there, he was part of 19 postseason appearances and 12 NCAA Tournament bids. Creighton was 460-211 overall and 231-129 in conference games during DeVries’ tenure at Creighton.
DeVries is a 1998 graduate of Northern Iowa, where he played for coach Eldon Miller and ranks 31st all-time in career scoring with 1,084 points. He was a two-time MVC Scholar-Athlete Team selection and two-time team captain. DeVries led the Panthers in 3-point shooting for three seasons and converted on 44 percent of his attempts as a senior with 3.1 assists per game.
A native of Aplington, Iowa, DeVries attended Aplington-Parkersburg High (Iowa) and was inducted into the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) Hall of Hall in 2015.
He is the oldest of five siblings. His brother, Jared, was an All-American on the Iowa football team and played for the Detroit Lions for 12 seasons. Another brother, Dusty, also played football at Iowa, while his youngest brother, Jay, played football at Wartburg College. His sister, Jodi, was an All-MVC Second-Team selection in volleyball at Northern Iowa.
DeVries and his wife, Ashley, have a son, Tucker, and a daughter, Tatum. Tucker recently became the ninth-ever player and first since Doug McDermott to win the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year trophy in back-to-back seasons while playing at Drake. He was also named an Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention selection earlier this month.
DeVries named Head Basketball Coach at West Virginia
