Personal Items: Did You Knows Regarding 2021 NCAA Tournament Coaches

There is a tendency to overindulge at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Anyone digesting the following assortment of incisive facts on most of the NCAA Division I Tournament coaches should find that variety is the spice of this occasionally irreverent smorgasbord. Remember: If a morsel isn't appetizing, don't be a glutton for punishment in trying to comprehend what makes the coaching community tick. Just proceed directly to the next tidbit. Sooner or later, there's bound to be a factoid you can savor. Several of the following mentors were student managers, not players, while attending college:

ABILENE CHRISTIAN: Joe Golding served as an assistant coach with two junior colleges before returning to his alma mater ACU in the same capacity.

ALABAMA: Detroit-area prep coach Nate Oats joined Bobby Hurley's Buffalo staff directly with junior college recruit Justin Moss in 2013 before Moss became Mid-American Conference Player of the Year the next season and one year before center Raheem Johnson aligned with the Bulls as another J.C. signee. Moss and Johnson played under Oats at Romulus H.S.

ARKANSAS: Among Eric Musselman's teammates at San Diego was Mike Whitmarsh, who won a silver medal in beach volleyball at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Musselman played on same high school team as former NBA forward Scott Roth (Utah Jazz/San Antonio Spurs/Minnesota Timberwolves) and former NFL Pro Bowl punter Tom Tupa with the New York Jets. Musselman's wife, Danyelle, is a former on-air personality and anchor for ESPN, FOX Sports, and the NFL Network. He and his father, Bill, were first father-son combination to both become NBA head coaches.

BAYLOR: Scott Drew served as coach of an Athletes In Action (AIA) squad touring Croatia and Bosnia in the summer of 1997.

BRIGHAM YOUNG: Mark Pope was a Kentucky teammate of former DI coaches Allen Edwards (Wyoming) and Scott Padgett (Samford) under Rick Pitino in 1994-95.

UC SANTA BARBARA: Joe Pasternack III was a student manager for Indiana under coach Bob Knight. Pasternack's brother-in-law, Roxy Bernstein, is a college basketball play-by-play announcer for ESPN.

CLEMSON: Brad Brownell played for DePauw University (Ind.) under former Indiana State coach Royce Waltman.

CLEVELAND STATE: Dennis Gates' wife, Jocelyn, is the Senior Associate Athletic Director at Boston College. Unlike most of his colleagues, Gates continued to don a suit during coronavirus-impacted season.

COLGATE: Matt Langel played under coach Fran Dunphy with Penn before serving as an assistant coach under him at Penn and Temple.

COLORADO: Tad Boyle, who played for Kansas under Ted Owens and Larry Brown, was a commodities broker in Kansas City before entering the coaching profession.

CONNECTICUT: One of Dan Hurley's assistants at previous pitstops Wagner and Rhode Island was brother Bobby Hurley, an All-American guard for Duke's back-to-back NCAA titlists in 1991 and 1992 and current Arizona State coach.

CREIGHTON: Following graduation from Northern Iowa, Greg McDermott played one season of professional basketball in Switzerland. McDermott led the Panthers in field-goal shooting three consecutive seasons from 1985-86 through 1987-88 when he was a combined 59.5% from the floor. He ranked 16th in the nation in that category as a junior.

DRAKE: Darian DeVries' brother, Jared, was a defensive end from Iowa with the NFL's Detroit Lions for 10 years from 1999 through 2008.

DREXEL: Zach Spiker's 14 victories with West Point in 2009-10 were the most by a Cadets coach in their inaugural campaign since Hall of Famer Bob Knight won 18 in 1965-66.

EASTERN WASHINGTON: Shantay Legans, an All-WAC second-team selection with Fresno State in 2003-04, played two seasons professionally in The Netherlands.

FLORIDA: Michael White is married to the former Kira Zschau, an All-SEC volleyball player for Ole Miss. He started in memorable 1998 NCAA playoff game when the Rebels were upset by Valparaiso, 70-69, on current Grand Canyon coach Bryce Drew's last-second jumper. His brother, Danny, played basketball for Towson State and Notre Dame, and his father, Kevin, served as athletic director at Notre Dame, Arizona, State, Tulane, Maine and Duke.

FLORIDA STATE: Leonard Hamilton, who set a school record by scoring 54 points for Gastonia (N.C.) Community College before attending Tennessee-Martin, was hired by Wilmington, N.C., native Michael Jordan to coach the Washington Wizards in 2000-01. Hamilton's nine-victory increase in Big East competition with Miami (Fla.) from 1994 to 1995 is the largest in conference history.

GEORGETOWN: Patrick Ewing was a New York Knicks teammate of Hoyas assistant coach Louis Orr. Former St. John's coach Mike Jarvis' record in his first three seasons at Cambridge (Mass.) Rindge and Latin High School with Ewing manning the middle from 1978-79 through 1980-81 was 77-1 (.987).

GEORGIA TECH: Josh Pastner, while an AAU coach in the Houston area, coached future NBA players such as T.J. Ford, Daniel Gibson and Emeka Okafor. Pastner was a college teammate of Arizona All-American Miles Simon, a former ESPN analyst named Most Outstanding Player at the 1997 Final Four.

GONZAGA: Mark Few never was a head coach at any level before inheriting that position after Dan Monson departed for Minnesota. Few was an assistant for two different Oregon high schools before becoming an aide with the Zags under Dan Fitzgerald and Monson. Few's wedding vows in 1994 were exchanged with Rev. Norm Few, the father of the groom.

GRAND CANYON: Bryce Drew's brother-in-law is Casey Shaw, a second-round draft choice by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1998 out of Toledo.

HARTFORD: John Gallagher's sisters, Ann and Joan, played college basketball for La Salle and Boston College, respectively.

HOUSTON: Kelvin Sampson was a three-year baseball letterman for Pembroke (N.C.) State.

ILLINOIS: Brad Underwood, as a juco recruit, took a visit to Oklahoma State, where his player host at the time was current Kansas coach Bill Self. Underwood's son, Tyler, played sparingly under his father with OSU and the Illini.

IONA: Rick Pitino averaged more assists per game (5.6) than points (4.7) in his two-year playing career with Massachusetts. Al Skinner, Boston College's all-time winningest coach, was captain of the 1973-74 UMass squad led in assists by Pitino for the second straight season.

IOWA: Fran McCaffery is believed to have been the youngest coach (28 years old) ever to take a team to the NCAA Tournament when he directed Lehigh to the 1988 playoffs. His wife, the former Margaret Nowlin, ranks among the top scorers in Notre Dame history. She was the catalyst behind the first-ever NCAA women's appearance by the Irish in 1992 and was named MVP of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference Tournament that year. Margaret served as an assistant coach at her alma mater in 1996-97.

KANSAS: Bill Self served as an assistant on the Big Eight Conference coaching staffs of Larry Brown (Kansas) and Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State). Self, an Oklahoma State alumnus, played in the Big Eight against Maryland coach Mark Turgeon (Kansas) and top two NBA draft picks Steve Stipanovich (2nd selection overall in 1983/attended Missouri), Wayman Tisdale (2nd in 1985/Oklahoma) and Danny Manning (1st in 1988/Kansas). Self, Oklahoma's High School Player of the Year over Tisdale in 1980-81, directed Oral Roberts to the nation's best winning percentage among independent schools in 1996 (18-9) and 1997 (21-7). San Antonio Spurs CEO R.C. Buford was a groomsman in Self's wedding.

LIBERTY: Ritchie McKay's brother, Orlando, caught 13 touchdown passes for the University of Washington from 1989 through 1991 (shared NCAA national title with Miami FL as senior) before becoming a fifth-round selection in 1992 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers. Their father, Joe, averaged 11.9 points per game for New Mexico from 1960-61 through 1962-63.

LOUISIANA STATE: Will Wade began his career as a student manager for Clemson.

LOYOLA (ILL.): Porter Moser's teammates at Creighton included back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference MVPs Bob Harstad (1990) and Chad Gallagher (1991).

MARYLAND: Mark Turgeon, the first Kansas player ever to play in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments (1984 through 1987), played in the Big Eight Conference against Illinois counterpart Bill Self (Oklahoma State).

MICHIGAN: According to Wikipedia, Juwan Howard has six children with four different women. Howard's first son, Juwan Jr. (former Western Michigan and University of Detroit forward), was raised by Markita Blyden, who was runner-up for Michigan's Miss Basketball when she and twin sister (Nakita Hatcher) led their high school to 1990 Class A state championship contest. Howard reportedly met Markita at Pontchartrain Hotel in Detroit in spring of 1991 before Chicago native enrolled at UM.

MICHIGAN STATE: Tom Izzo was a teammate in high school (Iron Mountain, Mich.) and college (Northern Michigan) of former Detroit Lions coach Steve Mariucci. Izzo, a running back, and Mariucci, a quarterback, were the best men in each others' weddings.

MISSOURI: Cuonzo Martin was a teammate of Matt Painter (Purdue coach) and Linc Darner (former Green Bay mentor) at Purdue under Gene Keady in 1991-92 and 1992-93.

MOREHEAD STATE: Preston Spradlin served as director of Kentucky coach John Calipari's Basketball Camps and Clinics from 2012 to 2014.

MOUNT ST. MARY'S: Dan Engelstad graduated from St. Mary's College MD as the school's all-time leader with 419 careers assists.

NORFOLK STATE: Robert Jones guided the visiting Spartans to an 80-79 overtime victory against No. 1 seed Alabama in 2019 NIT first round. Outcome is regarded as perhaps the biggest upset by point spread in NIT history.

NORTH CAROLINA: Roy Williams' son, Scott, was a backup guard with the Tar Heels in 1997-98 and 1998-99 under Bill Guthridge.

UNC GREENSBORO: Almost 90% of Wes Miller's field goals made with James Madison and North Carolina were three-pointers (129-of-146).

NORTH TEXAS: Grant McCasland's wife, Cece, played soccer for Texas Tech. He is the son of a Baptist minister.

OHIO UNIVERSITY: Jeff Boals was a teammate of Gary Trent with OU in the mid-1990s.

OHIO STATE: One of Chris Holtmann's teammates with Taylor (Ind.) was Akron coach John Groce, who previously was bench boss at Illinois.

OKLAHOMA: Lon Kruger never has won an undisputed regular-season conference championship (tied for first in SEC with Florida in 1993-94 and in Big Ten with Illinois in 1997-98). He was selected in 12th round of 1970 MLB draft by the Houston Astros out of high school and in 21st round of 1974 MLB draft by the St. Louis Cardinals after graduating from Kansas State. He was picked ahead of long-time MLB hurlers John Denny, Al Holland, Mike Krukow, Doc Medich, Dale Murray, Dave Rozema, Eric Show, Sammy Stewart, Tim Stoddard and Pat Zachry. Kruger compiled a 1-6 pitching record in summer of '74 for St. Petersburg in Florida State League (Class A).

OKLAHOMA STATE: Post-playing career for Mike Boynton Jr. began as a graduate manager at Furman in 2004-05.

ORAL ROBERTS: Paul Mills taught at two Christian academies for a total of six years before becoming a college assistant coach.

OREGON: Dana Altman is one of only five active coaches in NCAA Division I with 23 consecutive winning campaigns.

OREGON STATE: Wayne Tinkle played professionally for 12 seasons (in CBA, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Greece and briefly in International Basketball League). The youngest of 11 children (seven girls and four boys) married former Lady Griz basketball standout Lisa McLeod.

PURDUE: Matt Painter's father attended Big Ten Conference rival Indiana.

RUTGERS: Steve Pikiell played with his brother, Tim, for Connecticut under coach Jim Calhoun in 1989-90 and 1990-91.

ST. BONAVENTURE: Mark Schmidt was a freshman at Boston College in 1982 when he played in successive NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional games against legendary coaches Ray Meyer (DePaul), Jack Hartman (Kansas State) and Guy Lewis (Houston). As a senior in 1985, Schmidt played 11 minutes in the Eagles' 74-73 second-round victory against Mike Krzyzewski-coached Duke in the Midwest Regional.

SAN DIEGO STATE: Brian Dutcher's contract buyout is only $1 million, not in the $6 million range for any other college, if he has an opportunity to coach his alma mater (Minnesota). Dutcher's three sisters and wife also attended Minnesota, where his father, Jim, coached for 11 seasons from mid-1970s to mid-1980s and still resides.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Andy Enfield (Johns Hopkins '91) set the all-time NCAA career free-throw percentage record (92.5%; 431 of 466). His wife, Amanda Marcum, is a Maxim cover girl.

SYRACUSE: Jim Boeheim, an avid golfer, served as varsity golf coach for the Orange from 1967 until the program disbanded in 1973. He was an assistant basketball coach under Roy Danforth during that period. Boeheim, a three-year teammate of Syracuse All-American Dave Bing in the mid-1960s, played in the CBA for the Scranton Miners. Boeheim made 13-of-19 field-goal attempts (68.4%) in two 1966 NCAA playoff games for East Regional runner-up. On five occasions (1977-84-96-01-03), Boeheim guided the Orangemen to the Top 20 in a final AP poll after they were not ranked that high in the preseason.

TENNESSEE: Texas' turnaround in 1998-99 (19-13 record after going 14-17 in 1997-98 under Tom Penders) enabled Rick Barnes to become the only active coach to take two different schools to the NCAA playoffs in his maiden voyage with them after they posted a losing mark the previous campaign. He previously achieved the feat with Providence in the late 1980s. Barnes posted the nation's best winning percentage by a first-year major college head coach in 1987-88 when he went 20-10 (.667) in his lone season with George Mason.

TEXAS: When Shaka Smart graduated, he was the career assists leader for Kenyon College, a liberal arts school in Ohio.

TEXAS SOUTHERN: Johnny Jones was a high school teammate in DeRidder, La., of former UCLA/11-year NBA player Mike Sanders and McNeese State coach Dave Simmons.

TEXAS TECH: Chris Beard was student manager at Texas under Longhorns coach Tom Penders.

UCLA: Mick Cronin's father, Harold "Hep" Cronin, compiled more than 400 victories as a high school coach in the greater Cincinnati area. Hep also scouted for the Atlanta Braves and was chiefly responsible for them selecting Cincy product Drew Denson as their No. 1 draftee in 1984 (19th overall pick).

UTAH STATE: Craig Smith served as an assistant under Tim Miles at four colleges (Mayville State, North Dakota State, Colorado State and Nebraska).

VILLANOVA: Jay Wright worked as an administrative assistant with the Philadelphia Stars football franchise, which captured the 1983 United States Football League championship. He married a former Villanova cheerleader.

VIRGINIA: Tony Bennett is the son of former DI coach Dick Bennett and brother of former Indiana and Illinois State women's coach Kathi Bennett.

VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH: Mike Rhoades led Lebanon Valley (Pa.) to the 1994 NCAA Division III title, graduating as the college's all-time leading scorer.

VIRGINIA TECH: One hundred percent of Mike Young's student-athletes at Wofford who completed their eligibility graduated. He coached the Terriers for 17 seasons.

WEST VIRGINIA: In 1976-77, forward Bob Huggins led the fledgling Eastern Collegiate Basketball League in free-throw shooting with a mark of 84.4% for the Mountaineers. He wanted to play professionally but turned to coaching after a woman accidentally steered her car into the path of his ten-speed on a hilly street with the handlebars snapping his knee. Huggins, one of the top 10 high school scorers in the history of the state of Ohio, directed Akron to the nation's best winning percentage among independent schools in 1988 (21-7) and 1989 (21-8).

WICHITA STATE: At Okaloosa-Walton Community College (Fla.), Isaac Brown coached forward Kedrick Brown, the first J.C. player selected as an NBA lottery pick (11th overall by Boston Celtics in 2001 ahead of fellow first-rounders Richard Jefferson, Troy Murphy, Steven Hunter, Michael Bradley, Jason Collins, Zach Randolph, Brendan Haywood, Gerald Wallace, Samuel Dalembert, Jamaal Tinsley and Tony Parker).

WINTHROP: One of Pat Kelsey's teammates with Wyoming as a freshman in 1993-94 was Theo Ratliff, who played 16 seasons in the NBA with nine different franchises. After transferring back home to Cincinnati to play with Xavier, one of his teammates was James Posey, who played 12 seasons in the NBA with seven different franchises.

WISCONSIN: Greg Gard served as an assistant coach under Bo Ryan at three colleges (Wisconsin-Platteville, UW-Milwaukee and the Badgers).