Against All-American Odds: Winners as Players Become Losers as DI Mentors

Beyond possibly paying blow-a-hole-in-your-budget buyout, it shouldn't have been a surprise Danny Manning departed Wake Forest two years ago minus manufacturing a miracle. He compiled an anemic 30-80 ACC record in six seasons as head coach of the Demon Deacons. History is demonic for numerous former All-Americans showing they rarely measure up as bench bosses. For instance, Patrick Ewing, who won more than 84% of his games as celebrated center with Georgetown the first half of the 1980s (121-23 record) assumed control of coaching position at his alma mater five years ago with an impressive player pedigree as four-time All-American. But the odds are staggering against Ewing compiling a higher winning percentage as a bench boss than he did as premium player after the Hoyas went winless in Big East Conference competition last season. He would need to supplant UCLA's John Wooden (.808) atop the coaching list in this category. Coincidentally, Wooden assembled the same winning percentage as an A-A player with Purdue as Ewing did for the Hoyas.

The odds of succeeding on Long Island's sideline are also remote for former DePaul A-A Rod Strickland, who has zero experience as a college head coach when hired by LIU. It's the same amount of experience Penny Hardaway had when hired by his alma mater four seasons ago. But commercial comrade Lil' Penny could lounge in a Memphis Mafia sideline chair and assemble a better differential at Big Penny's alma mater than St. John's luminary Chris Mullin regarding winning percentage as a A-A player compared to coaching acumen. Mullin's winning percentage in his four seasons as coach of alma mater was 31.9% lower than as a player (comparable to Ewing's -39.3% and Manning's -31.6%). Other All-Americans who posted significantly worst winning percentages as a DI coach than as a player include Sidney Moncrief (69.3% lower), Bo Ellis (-67.1%), Corliss Williamson (-52.2%), Tony Yates (-50.9%), Juan Dixon (-50%), Jim Jarvis (-48.3%), Mark Macon (-48.2%), Clyde Drexler (-46.6%), Butch Beard (-45.7%), Isiah Thomas (-44.8%), Monte Towe (-44.6%), Henry Bibby (-44.1%), Donyell Marshall (-41.8%), Jerry Stackhouse (-39.3%) and Jason Gardner (-37.9%).

Strickland faces an uphill battle as a bench boss resembling Hardaway's 31-point defeat with Tigers against Cincinnati in 1992 regional final. Indiana's Branch McCracken, who directed the Hoosiers to NCAA tourney titles in 1940 and 1953, is the only one of the first 66 All-Americans who became major-college mentors to finish his coaching career compiling a higher winning percentage as coach. Fifty-three of the 66 A-As won in excess of 2/3 of their college games, but more than half of them compiled losing marks as bench boss. Dave Schellhase is the only A-A to compile a losing record as a player (Purdue) and coach (Indiana State). Hardaway has the best chance by far of any current coach to eventually join McCracken in rare-air category among the following alphabetical list of All-American players posting winning career records as a DI mentor:

All-American (School; Winning % as Player)	Coaching Career Summary (Winning % at DI Level)
*Steve Alford (Indiana 84-87; .724)	Southwest Missouri State 96-99/Iowa 00-07/New Mexico 08-13/UCLA 14-19/Nevada 20-22 (.653)
*Tommy Amaker (Duke 84-87; .783)	Seton Hall 98-01/Michigan 02-07 /Harvard 08-22 (.603)
Forrest "Whitey" Baccus (SMU 33-35; .580)	Southern Methodist 39-42, 46 & 47 (.437)
Alfred "Butch" Beard (Louisville 67-69; .783)	Howard 91-94/Morgan State 02-06 (.326)
Henry Bibby (UCLA 70-72; .967)	Southern California 96-05 (.526)
Charles "Tub" Bradley (Wyoming 78-81; .616)	Loyola Marymount 98-00 (.244)
Gary Brokaw (Notre Dame 73 & 74; .746)	Iona 87-91 (.493)
Bob Calihan (Detroit 38-40; .714)	Detroit 49-69 (.559)
Ernie Calverley (Rhode Island State 43-46; .807)	Rhode Island 58-68 (.552)
Tom Churchill (Oklahoma 28-30; .725)	New Mexico 31-33 (.627)
Jimmy Collins (New Mexico State 68-70; .841)	Illinois-Chicago 97-10 (.512)
Bob Cousy (Holy Cross 47-50; .839)	Boston College 64-69 (.750)
Howie Dallmar (Stanford 42 & 43/Penn 45; .714)	Penn 49-54/Stanford 55-75 (.534)
*Johnny Dawkins (Duke 83-86; .714)	Stanford 09-16/UCF 17-22 (.589)
*Juan Dixon (Maryland 99-02; .780)	Coppin State 18-22 (.280)
Clyde Drexler (Houston 81-83; .794)	Houston 99 & 00 (.328)
Maurice "Bo" Ellis (Marquette 74-77; .849)	Chicago State 99-03 (.178)
*Patrick Ewing (Georgetown 82-85; .840)	Georgetown 18-22 (.447)
Larry Finch (Memphis State 71-73; .750)	Memphis State 87-97 (.629)
Jason Gardner (Arizona 00-03; .787)	IUPUI 15-19 (.408)
Tom Gola (La Salle 52-55; .856)	La Salle 69 & 70 (.740)
Jack Gray (Texas 33-35; .765)	Texas 37-42 & 46-51 (.667)
Sidney Green (UNLV 80-83; .719)	Florida Atlantic 00-05 (.309)
*Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway (Memphis State 92 & 93; .652)	Memphis 19-22 (.664)
Clem Haskins (Western Kentucky 65-67; .851)	Western Kentucky 81-86/Minnesota 87-99 (.585)
Walt Hazzard (UCLA 62-64; .773)	UCLA 85-88 (.621)
*Juwan Howard (Michigan 92-94; .784)	Michigan 20-22 (.656)
*Bobby Hurley Jr. (Duke 90-93; .821)	Buffalo 14 & 15/Arizona State 16-22 (.571)
Jim Jarvis (Oregon State 63-65; .733)	Idaho 75-78 (.250)
Ed "Moose" Krause (Notre Dame 32-34; .818)	Holy Cross 40-42/Notre Dame 43, 44 & 47-51 (.637)
Mark Macon (Temple 88-91; .729)	Binghamton 10-12 (.247)
Kyle Macy (Kentucky 76 & 78-80; .752)	Morehead State 98-06 (.424)
*Mark Madsen (Stanford 97-00; .814)	Utah Valley 20-22 (.500)
Danny Manning (Kansas 85-88; .769)	Tulsa 13 & 14/Wake Forest 15-20 (.453)
Donyell Marshall (Connecticut 92-94; .696)	Central Connecticut State 17-21 (.278)
Willie McCarter (Drake 67-69; .646)	Detroit 80-82 (.407)
John McCarthy (Canisius 54-56; .622)	Canisius 75-77 (.364)
E. "Branch" McCracken (Indiana 28-30; .588)	Indiana 39-43 & 47-65 (.677)
Banks McFadden (Clemson 38-40; .603)	Clemson 47-56 (.394)
Sidney Moncrief (Arkansas 76-79; .836)	UALR 00 (.143)
Chris Mullin (St. John's 82-85; .766)	St. John's 16-19 (.447)
Jeff Mullins (Duke 62-64; .849)	UNC Charlotte 86-96 (.562)
Jim O'Brien (Boston College 69-71; .641)	St. Bonaventure 83-86/Boston College 87-97/Ohio State 98-04 (.547)
John Oldham (Western Kentucky 43 & 47-49; .887)	Tennessee Tech 56-64/Western Kentucky 65-71 (.679)
Barry Parkhill (Virginia 71-73; .620)	William & Mary 84-87 (.387)
Mark Price (Georgia Tech 83-86; .675)	Charlotte 16-18 (.417)
Jeff Ruland (Iona 78-80; .773)	Iona 99-07 (.507)
Tom "Satch" Sanders (NYU 58-60; .662)	Harvard 74-77 (.430)
Dave Schellhase (Purdue 64-66; .444)	Indiana State 83-85 (.435)
Harv Schmidt (Illinois 55-57; .742)	Illinois 68-74 (.536)
Frank Selvy (Furman 52-54; .738)	Furman 67-70 (.427)
John Shumate (Notre Dame 73 & 74; .746)	Southern Methodist 89-95 (.398)
Bob Spessard (Washington & Lee VA 36-38; .762)	Washington & Lee VA 49 (.455)
*Jerry Stackhouse (North Carolina 94 & 95; .812)	Vanderbilt 20-22 (.419)
*Damon Stoudamire (Arizona 92-95; .800)	Pacific 17-21 (.479)
Rod Strickland (DePaul 86-88; .739)	Long Island 23 (TBD)
Isiah Thomas (Indiana 80 & 81; .734)	Florida International 10-12 (.286)
John Thompson Jr. (Providence 62-64; .800)	Georgetown 73-99 (.714)
Monte Towe (North Carolina State 73-75; .919)	New Orleans 02-06 (.473)
*Darrell Walker (Arkansas 81-83; .802)	UALR 19-22 (.443)
Lou Watson (Indiana 47-50; .607)	Indiana 66-69 & 71 (.508)
Paul Westphal (Southern California 70-72; .744)	Pepperdine 02-06 (.517)
Corliss Williamson (Arkansas 93-95; .817)	Central Arkansas 11-13 (.295)
John Wooden (Purdue 30-32; .840)	UCLA 49-75 (.808)
*Mike Woodson (Indiana 77-80; .655)	Indiana 22 (.600)
Tony Yates (Cincinnati 61-63; .921)	Cincinnati 84-89 (.412)

*Active coaches.