List of Texas Tech Red Raiders head men's basketball coaches
Encyclopedia
The Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball program competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association
's (NCAA) Division I, representing Texas Tech University
in the Big 12 Conference
. The program has had 13 head coach
es since it began play during the 1925–26 NCAA men's basketball season.
Texas Tech (then known as Texas Technological College
) was known as the "Matador
s" from 1925 to 1936, to reflect the influence of the Spanish Renaissance architecture
on campus. The Matadors' first head coach, Grady Higginbotham
, started and led the program until Victor Payne
replaced him after two seasons. In 1932, Texas Tech was admitted to the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association
, also known as the Border Conference. In the team's first season of conference play, Texas Tech's fourth head coach, Dell Morgan
, went undefeated, winning the first of three consecutive Border Conference championships. At the beginning of the 1937–38 season, Texas Tech's short-lived Matadors moniker was replaced officially with "Red Raiders
", the nickname the team has today. Texas Tech received their first postseason bid in 1942 to the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball
tournament during Berl Huffman
's final season with the team in his first term as head coach. Huffman's successor, Polk Robison
, led Texas Tech to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 1956
, the same year Robison began a three-year conference championship winning streak. Before withdrawing from the Border Conference in 1956, the Red Raiders won five conference championships and one co-championship.
In 1957, Texas Tech was admitted to the Southwest Conference (SWC), in which it experienced similar success as it had in the Border Conference. In the regular season, the Red Raiders won four conference championships and three conference co-championships. At the end of the 1976 regular season, the SWC began an annual conference tournament known as the SWC Classic
. Texas Tech won five SWC Classic titles in their six appearances in the conference tournament championship game; three under Gerald Myers
and two under James Dickey
. The university remained in the SWC until the conference ceased operations in 1996, when Dickey's 1995–96 team
ended the season ranked eighth in both the Associated Press Poll
and Coaches' Poll and won the conference's final regular season and SWC Classic titles. Following the dissolution of the SWC, the university became a charter member in the South Division of the Big 12 Conference. Since joining the Big 12 Conference, the Red Raiders did not receive a bid to postseason play until 2002
, when Hall of Fame
coach Bob Knight was hired. During Knight's six-year tenure, Texas Tech received five postseason bids, participating in four NCAA tournaments
and one National Invitation Tournament
(NIT). The Red Raiders won the third place playoff
in the 2003 NIT Tournament
, the farthest a Red Raiders men's basketball team has advanced in postseason play. During the 2007–08 season, Bob Knight resigned as head coach and his son, then assistant head coach, Pat Knight
became Texas Tech's 13th head coach. In the 2009-10 season, Pat Knight led the Red Raiders to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) where they were defeated in the quarterfinals. After failing to make the NCAA tournament, and compiling a 16-42 Big 12 Conference record over his three and a half seasons as head coach, Texas Tech terminated Pat Knight's position has head coach. On March 20, 2011, Texas Tech hired Billy Clyde Gillispie, former head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats
, Texas A&M Aggies
, and UTEP Miners, as the 14th head coach of the Texas Tech men's basketball program.
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
's (NCAA) Division I, representing Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
in the Big 12 Conference
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
. The program has had 13 head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
es since it began play during the 1925–26 NCAA men's basketball season.
Texas Tech (then known as Texas Technological College
History of Texas Tech University
The history of Texas Tech University dates back to the early 1880s, but the university was not established until 1923.-Establishment:The call to open a college in West Texas began shortly after the arrival of settlers in the area in the 1880s. In 1917, the Texas legislature passed a bill creating a...
) was known as the "Matador
Matador
A torero or toureiro is a bullfighter and the main performer in bullfighting, practised in Spain, Colombia, Portugal, Mexico, France and various other countries influenced by Spanish culture. In Spanish, the word torero describes any of the performers who actively participate in the bullfight...
s" from 1925 to 1936, to reflect the influence of the Spanish Renaissance architecture
Architecture of the Spanish Renaissance
Renaissance architecture was that style of architecture which evolved firstly in Florence and then Rome and other parts of Italy as the result of Humanism and a revived interest in Classical architecture...
on campus. The Matadors' first head coach, Grady Higginbotham
Grady Higginbotham
Roswell Grady Higginbotham was the first head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team. Leading it to a 14–18–0 record from 1925 to 1927....
, started and led the program until Victor Payne
Victor Payne
Victor Payne was a head college basketball and football coach. He was the head football coach at Abilene Christian College and Simmons University...
replaced him after two seasons. In 1932, Texas Tech was admitted to the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Border Conference , was an NCAA-affiliated college athletic conference founded in 1931 that disbanded following the 1961-1962 season...
, also known as the Border Conference. In the team's first season of conference play, Texas Tech's fourth head coach, Dell Morgan
Dell Morgan
-External links:...
, went undefeated, winning the first of three consecutive Border Conference championships. At the beginning of the 1937–38 season, Texas Tech's short-lived Matadors moniker was replaced officially with "Red Raiders
Texas Tech Red Raiders
The Texas Tech Red Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University . The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders; however, the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raiders" name. The university's athletic program fields teams in 15 varsity sports and 30 club sports...
", the nickname the team has today. Texas Tech received their first postseason bid in 1942 to the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball
NAIA national men's basketball championship
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's Basketball National Championship has been held annually since 1937 . The tournament was established by James Naismith to crown a national champion for smaller colleges and universities...
tournament during Berl Huffman
Berl Huffman
-References:...
's final season with the team in his first term as head coach. Huffman's successor, Polk Robison
Polk Robison
Polk Robison was an American collegiate basketball and football coach and college athletics administrator who served as the head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball team from 1942 to 1946 and again from 1947 to 1961...
, led Texas Tech to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 1956
1956 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
-Midwest Region:-West Region:-Far West Region:-Final Four:-Notes:* Canisius's first-round victory over the second-ranked North Carolina State Wolfpack, considered by many to be among the top ten upsets in tournament history, set a record for most overtime periods in a Division I Men's tournament...
, the same year Robison began a three-year conference championship winning streak. Before withdrawing from the Border Conference in 1956, the Red Raiders won five conference championships and one co-championship.
In 1957, Texas Tech was admitted to the Southwest Conference (SWC), in which it experienced similar success as it had in the Border Conference. In the regular season, the Red Raiders won four conference championships and three conference co-championships. At the end of the 1976 regular season, the SWC began an annual conference tournament known as the SWC Classic
Southwest Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
The Southwest Conference was an NCAA athletic conference that existed from 1915 to 1996, and held its postseason basketball tournament, also called the "SWC Classic," starting in 1976.-Tournament champions by year:-Championships by school:- References :...
. Texas Tech won five SWC Classic titles in their six appearances in the conference tournament championship game; three under Gerald Myers
Gerald Myers
Gerald Myers is an American former college basketball coach. He was the head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team and the Houston Baptist Huskies men's basketball team....
and two under James Dickey
James Dickey
James Lafayette Dickey was an American poet and novelist. He was appointed the eighteenth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1966.-Early years:...
. The university remained in the SWC until the conference ceased operations in 1996, when Dickey's 1995–96 team
1995–96 Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team
The 1995–96 Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team represented Texas Tech University in the Southwest Conference during the 1995–96 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. This was Texas Tech's final year in the conference before becoming a charter member of the Big 12 Conference. The Head...
ended the season ranked eighth in both the Associated Press Poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
and Coaches' Poll and won the conference's final regular season and SWC Classic titles. Following the dissolution of the SWC, the university became a charter member in the South Division of the Big 12 Conference. Since joining the Big 12 Conference, the Red Raiders did not receive a bid to postseason play until 2002
2002 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2002 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 12, 2002, and ended with the championship game on April 1 in Atlanta, Georgia...
, when Hall of Fame
Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...
coach Bob Knight was hired. During Knight's six-year tenure, Texas Tech received five postseason bids, participating in four NCAA tournaments
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
and one National Invitation Tournament
National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitation Tournament is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. There are two NIT events each season. The first, played in November and known as the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off , was founded in 1985...
(NIT). The Red Raiders won the third place playoff
Third place playoff
The third place playoff is a single match that is included in many sporting knockout tournaments to decide which competitor or team will be credited with finishing third and fourth. The teams that compete in the third place playoffs are usually the two losing semi-finalists in a particular...
in the 2003 NIT Tournament
2003 National Invitation Tournament
-Semifinals & Finals:*Third Place - Texas Tech 71, Minnesota 61St. John's later vacated the title due to an ineligible player....
, the farthest a Red Raiders men's basketball team has advanced in postseason play. During the 2007–08 season, Bob Knight resigned as head coach and his son, then assistant head coach, Pat Knight
Pat Knight
Patrick "Pat" Knight is an American college basketball coach for Lamar University. He became the coach of the Lamar Cardinals basketball team on April 5, 2011. He was previously the head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team until March 7, 2011...
became Texas Tech's 13th head coach. In the 2009-10 season, Pat Knight led the Red Raiders to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) where they were defeated in the quarterfinals. After failing to make the NCAA tournament, and compiling a 16-42 Big 12 Conference record over his three and a half seasons as head coach, Texas Tech terminated Pat Knight's position has head coach. On March 20, 2011, Texas Tech hired Billy Clyde Gillispie, former head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
The Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team, representing the University of Kentucky, is the winningest in the history of college basketball, both in all-time wins and all-time winning percentage. Kentucky's all-time record currently stands at 2058–647...
, Texas A&M Aggies
Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball
The Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball team represents Texas A&M University in NCAA Division I college basketball. The Aggies play home games at Reed Arena, a 12,500-capacity arena in College Station, Texas on the campus of Texas A&M University....
, and UTEP Miners, as the 14th head coach of the Texas Tech men's basketball program.
Key
| # | Number of coaches |
| GC | Games coached |
| † | Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide... |
| BT | Basketball Times Coaches of the Year Basketball Times Basketball Times is an American basketball magazine that has been in circulation since 1978, and is published by The Hoop Group LLC. Basketball Times publishes monthly and mainly focuses on college basketball and basketball recruiting.- History :... |
| NCHOF | National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame The National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Kansas City, Missouri, is a hall of fame and museum dedicated to college basketball. The museum is an integral portion of the College Basketball Experience created by the National Association of Basketball Coaches , located at the Sprint... |
| Border | Border Conference Coach of the Year |
| SWC | Southwest Conference Coach of the Year |
| OW | Wins |
| OL | Losses |
| O% | Winning percentage Winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. It is defined as wins divided by wins plus losses . Ties count as a ½ loss and a ½ win... |
| CW | Wins |
| CL | Losses |
| C% | Winning percentage |
| RCs | Regular Season Championships |
| TCs | Tournament Championships |
| PW | Wins |
| PL | Losses |
Coaches
- Statistics correct as of the end of the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball seasonThe 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 8, 2010 with the preliminary games of the 2010 Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic, and ended with the 2011 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament's championship game on April 4, 2011 at Reliant Stadium in Houston...
| # | Name | Season(s) | GC | OW | OL | O% | CW | CL | C% | PW | PL | RCs | TCs | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1925–1927 | 32 | 14 | 18 | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | — | ||
| 2 | 1927–1930 | 52 | 31 | 21 | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | — | ||
| 3 | 1930–1931 | 20 | 11 | 9 | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | 0— | — | ||
| 4 | 1931–1934 | 69 | 42 | 27 | 15 | 1 | 0— | 0— | 2 | 0— | — | |||
| 5 | 1934–1935 | 24 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0— | 0— | 1 | 0— | — | |||
| 6 | 188 | 116 | 72 | 56 | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0— | — | ||||
| 7 | 1943–1946, 1947–1961 | 443 | 248 | 195 | 141 | 82 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0— | ||||
| 8 | 1961–1969 | 192 | 101 | 91 | 66 | 46 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0— | — | |||
| 9 | 1969–1970 | 24 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 0— | 0— | 0 | 0— | — | |||
| 10 | 1970–1991 | 587 | 326 | 261 | 180 | 142 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | SWC (5x) | |||
| 11 | 1991–2001 | 287 | 164 | 123 | 75 | 75 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | SWC (1992, 1996) | |||
| 12 | † | 2001–2008 | 220 | 138 | 82 | 53 | 49 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | NCHOF (2006) | ||
| 13 | 2008–2011 | 111 | 50 | 61 | 16 | 42 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | |||
| 14 | 2011– | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |