Story: Adam Nelson (@HD_DirtKing)
Congratulations to the following coaches who have been selected as the Week 15 HoopDirt.com Coach of the Week presented by Just Play Solutions. These coaches are now eligible to receive the HoopDirt.com National Coach of the Year Award presented by Just Play Solutions which will be announced at the conclusion of the 2023-24 college basketball season.
This is the ninth season that HoopDirt.com has run the Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs. The list of 2023-24 Coach of the Week winners, as well as the list of all-time COY winners can be found following this week’s honorees.
To nominate coaches for future weeks, please email [email protected] with your selection(s).
The week 15 winners are:
D1: Dan Hurley – UConn
Weekly record (overall): 2-0 (24-2)
Past week’s results: 100-65 W at DePaul, 81-53 W vs #4 Marquette
Highlights: Hurley’s #1 ranked Huskies opened their week on Wednesday by pounding DePaul 100-65. It was their 18th straight win vs the Blue Demons, and they ecliped the 100-point plateau for the 3rd time this season. On Saturday, UConn hammered #4 Marquette 81-53 to become the first BIG EAST team in history to win three-straight conference games by at least 25 points. The 28-point margin of victory vs Marquette marked the largest in a top-five conference game in the history of the AP Poll. Connecticut’s 14-game conference winning streak ties the longest in a single season in BIG EAST history.
NCAA D2: Mac McConnell – Texas A&M International
Weekly record (overall): 2-0 (15-10)
Past week’s results: 65-55 W vs #4 Dallas Baptist, 64-56 W vs UT Tyler
Highlights: TAMIU held NCAA D2 #4 Dallas Baptist to just 37% shooting, and out rebounded DBU 36-23 as they upset the visitors 65-55. The win was their best performance over a ranked opponent since defeating #15 Colorado Mesa in November 2022. The Dustdevils then beat UT Tyler at home on senior night 64-56 to extend their winning streak to four games, and improve their record at home to 11-2.
NCAA D3: B.J. Dunne – Gettysburg College
Weekly record (overall): 2-0 (19-6)
Past week’s results: 68-64 W vs McDaniel, 79-53 W vs Muhlenberg
Highlights: Dunne’s Bullets trailed McDaniel by 11 at the break on Wednesday, but went on an 11-0 run coming out of the half, and battled the rest of the way to come away with a 68-64 win. They again trailed at the half on Saturday vs Muhlenberg, but blew Mules out in the second frame 45-17. With the win, Dunne’s squad captured the Centennial Conference regular season title, and will have home court advantage throughout the upcoming tournament. The 19-wins this season for Gettysburg are the most since 2007-08, and are tied for the 3rd most in program history (dating back to 1900).
NAIA: Kory Alford – Huntington University
Weekly record (overall): 2-0 (18-8)
Past week’s results: 99-79 W vs #1 Grace, 80-76 W at Spring Arbor
Highlights: A monster win for Alford’s squad last week, as they knocked off NAIA #1 Grace College 99-79. Grace (now 24-1) entered the contest as the only undefeated men’s college basketball team in the nation across all divisions. The Foresters held Grace to 12 points below their season average of 91, and limited the Lancers to fewer than 80 points for just the 4th time this season. There was no let down for HU on Saturday, as they traveled to Spring Arbor and came away with the 80-76 win. With two wins last week, Huntington now sits in third place in the Crossroads league.
JUCO: Franklin Chatman – Paul D. Camp Community College
Weekly record (overall): 2-0 (17-4)
Past week’s results: 88-81 W vs Virginia Peninsula, 100-90 W vs Mountain Gateway
Highlights: The Hurricanes, ranked as the NJCAA D3 #11 team in the country, have been on quite a run since the first of the year. With two more wins last week, Chatman’s squad is now a perfect 10-0 in 2024, and riding a ten game win streak. Camp also has an unblemished 8-0 mark at home on the season, they lead NJCAA D3 in blocks per game at 7.7, and are 6th in the country in rebound margin at +14.0 per game.
2023-24 HoopDirt.com / Just Play Solutions Coach of the Week Winners
NCAA DI: Mark Byington – James Madison University
NCAA DII: Alfred Jordan – Clark Atlanta University
NCAA DIII: Caleb Kimbrough – Hampden-Sydney College
NAIA: Darnell Archey – University of Mobile
JUCO: Kris Baumann – Odessa College
NCAA DI: Ritchie McKay – Liberty University
NCAA DII: Mark Kuntz – Post University
NCAA DIII: Eric Bridgeland – University of Redlands
NAIA: Dannton Jackson – Talladega College
JUCO: Dillon Hargrove – National Park College
NCAA DI: David Ragland – Evansville University
NCAA DII: Jordan Fee – Gannon University
NCAA DIII: Anthony Medina – University of St. Thomas (TX)
NAIA: Chase Teichmann – Florida College
JUCO: Hayden Sowers – South Plains College
NCAA DI: Damon Stoudamire – Georgia Tech
NCAA DII: John Ellenwood – Ashland University
NCAA DIII: Brandon Linton – Tufts University
NAIA: Matt O’Brien – Southwestern College
JUCO: Darren Stratton – Northern Essex CC
NCAA DI: Bryce Drew – Grand Canyon University
NCAA DII: Bob Pietrack – Fort Lewis College
NCAA DIII: Michael McSloy – Drew University
NAIA: Tigh Compton – University of Pikeville
JUCO: Terrell Harris – Prince George’s CC
NCAA DI: Danny Sprinkle – Utah State University
NCAA DII: Artis Mattox – Benedict College
NCAA DIII: Dave Macedo – Virginia Wesleyan University
NAIA: Chris Wright – Langston University
JUCO: Joey Cantens – Daytona State College
Week 7
NCAA DI: Christmas Holiday – no winner selected
NCAA DII: Christmas Holiday – no winner selected
NCAA DIII: Christmas Holiday – no winner selected
NAIA: Christmas Holiday – no winner selected
JUCO: Christmas Holiday – no winner selected
NCAA DI: Shaka Smart – Marquette University
NCAA DII: Bryan Rooney – Cal State East Bay
NCAA DIII: Todd McGuinness – Case Western Reserve University
NAIA: Scott Moore – Grace College
JUCO: Steve DeMeo – Northwest Florida State College
NCAA DI: Shaheen Holloway – Seton Hall University
NCAA DII: Matt Majkrzak – Northern Michigan University
NCAA DIII: Jimmy Smith – Trinity College (TX)
NAIA: Josh Pickens – Lawrence Tech
JUCO: Matt Lee – Herkimer College
NCAA DI: Darian DeVries – Drake University
NCAA DII: Dave Moore – University of West Georgia
NCAA DIII: D.P. Harris – Saint Vincent College
NAIA: Dee Brown – Roosevelt University
JUCO: Ryan Miley – Hocking College
NCAA DI: Amir Abdur-Rahim – University of South Florida
NCAA DII: Mike Nestor – Lock Haven University
NCAA DIII: Dave Klatsky – NYU
NAIA: Robert Ford – Saint Xavier University
JUCO: Donnie Tyndall – Chipola College
NCAA DI: Lamont Paris – University of South Carolina
NCAA DII: Vinay Patel – Angelo State University
NCAA DIII: Matt Hunter – York College (PA)
NAIA: Josh Gamblin – Mid-America Christian University
JUCO: Nick Ramos – Rock Valley College
NCAA DI: Alan Huss – High Point
NCAA DII: Justin Wieck – Minnesota Duluth
NCAA DIII: Josh Merkel – Randolph-Macon College
NAIA: Delton Deal – Southwestern Assemblies of God University
JUCO: Robert Byrd – Kilgore College
NCAA DI: Grant Billmeier – NJIT
NCAA DII: Tom Brown – West Texas A&M
NCAA DIII: Don Friday – Penn State Harrisburg
NAIA: Marcus “Chief” Bryant – Keiser University
JUCO: Mike Smelkinson – Howard Community College
Previous HoopDirt.com Coach of the Year Award Winners:
Division I
- 2022-23: Jerome Tang – Kansas State University
- 2021-22: Ed Cooley – Providence Colleg
- 2020-21: Dennis Gates – Cleveland State University
- 2019-20: Joe Gallo – Merrimack College
- 2018-19: Kelvin Sampson – University of Houston
- 2017-18: Porter Moser – Loyola University Chicago
- 2016-17: Chris Collins – Northwestern University
- 2015-16: Roy Williams – University of North Carolina
Division II
- 2022-23: Jim Crutchfield – Nova Southeastern
- 2021-22: Jim Crutchfield – Nova Southeastern
- 2020-21: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2019-20: Fred Watson – Miles College
- 2018-19: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2017-18: Andy Bronkema – Ferris State
- 2016-17: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2015-16: Josh Schertz – Lincoln Memorial University
Division III
- 2022-23: John Krikorian – Christopher Newport University
- 2021-22: Brian Baptiste – UMass Dartmouth
- 2020-21: Brooks Miller – Trine University
- 2019-20: Elliot Steinmetz – Yeshiva University
- 2018-19: Dale Wellman – Nebraska Wesleyan University
- 2017-18: Eric Bridgeland – Whitman College
- 2016-17: Stephen Brennan – Babson College
- 2015-16: John Tauer – University of St. Thomas
NAIA
- 2022-23: Chris Wright – Langston University
- 2021-22: Stacy Hollowell – Loyola University New Orleans
- 2020-21: Delano Thomas – Shawnee State University
- 2019-20: Colby Blaine – College of Idaho
- 2018-19: Chris Briggs – Georgetown College
- 2017-18: Craig Doty – Graceland University
- 2016-17: Kevin Burton – Union College
- 2015-16: Larry Cordaro – LSU-Alexandria
JUCO
- 2022-23: Rick Cabrera – Tallahassee Community College
- 2021-22: Greg Heiar – Northwest Florida State
- 2020-21: COVID Season – No winner selected
- 2019-20: Randy Casey – Milwaukee Area Technical College
- 2018-19: Billy Gillispie – Ranger College
- 2017-18: Paul Cisek – Brookdale Community College
- 2016-17: Todd Lorensen – Southwestern Community College
- 2015-16: Craig Doty – Rock Valley College
USCAA
- 2018-19: LeShawn Hammett – Penn State Wilkes-Barre
