The University of Tulsa confirmed Monday night that Louisiana Tech’s Eric Konkol will be introduced on Tuesday as TU’s 31st head basketball coach. A welcome party and news conference will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
A meet and greet with Coach Konkol will take place for fans and TU students following Tuesday’s news conference.
Konkol comes to Tulsa following seven seasons at LA Tech, where he compiled a 153-75 record. He won 46 games in his first two seasons, the most for any previous LA Tech head coach, and his 153 career victories is the third-highest win total in school history. Konkol’s teams produced six seasons with 20+ wins and finished among the top 3 in Conference USA standings five of his seven years.
Konkol returns to where he began his start in collegiate coaching. He was a student assistant coach for Tulsa’s 2001 NIT Championship team under Head Coach Buzz Peterson.
After his one-year stint at Tulsa, Konkol was on the coaching staffs at Tennessee, George Mason and Miami (Fla.) before becoming the LA Tech head coach in 2015. Konkol has served 20 years as a collegiate coach and has been a part of 14 20-win seasons with 10 postseason tournament appearances.
LA Tech completed the 2021-22 season with an overall 24-10 record and a 12-6 league mark. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 75.2 scoring average.
In the 2020-21 campaign, Konkol guided LA Tech to a 24-8 overall record, a Conference USA West Division title and a third-place finish in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) by defeating Ole Miss, Western Kentucky and No. 1 overall seed Colorado State in the NIT Final Four consolation game. As a result, Konkol garnered numerous awards including Conference USA Coach of the Year, NABC District 11 Coach of the Year, LABC Louisiana Major College Coach of the Year and LSWA Louisiana Coach of the Year. He was also a finalist for the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award.
Before his stint at LA Tech, Konkol spent four seasons (2011-15) on the staff of Miami Head Coach Jim Larranaga. The Hurricanes posted three 20-win seasons and advanced to postseason play three years. The 2012-13 team advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 and finished the season with a 29-7 record.
Prior to that, Konkol was with Larranaga for seven years at George Mason (2002-05, 2007-11), helping the Patriots to four 20-win seasons, four postseason appearances and an average of 19.8 wins per year.
A native of Amherst, Wis., Konkol earned his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with an emphasis in exercise management from Wisconsin Eau Claire. He played three seasons of basketball for the Division III program, advancing to the national championship game in 2000. He received the team’s Inspiration Award after his junior and senior seasons and was an honorary captain as a senior.
Konkol, 45, and his wife, Meagan, have two sons, Ethan and Ryan.
OFFICIAL: Konkol named Head Basketball Coach at Tulsa
