Coaching Greats

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former UL Monroe head coach Mike Vining, who remains the winningest coach in Southland Conference history. During his time at UL Monroe Vining won 401 games and led the Warhawks to seven NCAA Tournament appearances. Having resigned before ULM moved into the Sun Belt, Vining (elected to the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame last summer) now works for former player (and current Monroe mayor) Jamie Mayo as his Executive Administrative Officer.

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former Nicholls State head coach Rickey Broussard. In 12 seasons at the Louisiana school Broussard won 150 games and two led Nicholls State to NCAA Tournament appearances in 1995 and 1998. Broussard now works for State Farm Insurance as a recruiter.

Jon Teitel: You played baseball at Louisiana-Lafayette. How good a baseball player were you back then, and how did you end up switching from baseball player to basketball coach? 

Early this year CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former Norfolk State head coach Charles Christian to discuss his tenure at the school. Coach Christian won seven conference titles and was named conference Coach of the Year four times. Sadly Coach Christian passed away in early April at the age of 83.

Jon Teitel: How did you get into coaching, and why did you choose Norfolk State? 

In the most recent installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer spent some time with current Akron head coach Keith Dambrot. During his time at his alma mater, the former Akron baseball captain has won 162 games and led the Zips to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. Coach Dambrot also coached LeBron James in high school for two years, a period in which St. Vincent/ St. Mary's won 53 of 54 games.

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with both former Wright State head coach Ralph Underhill and his long-time assistant Jim Brown (Underhill was dealing with some medical issues at the time of the original interview). In 18 seasons at the Dayton school, Coach Underhill won 356 games, a Division II national title and led the Raiders to an appearance in the 1993 NCAA Tournament.  

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" series Jon Teitel spent some time with former Kennesaw State head coach Tony Ingle, who won 178 games and a Division II national title in 11 seasons at the school. During Coach Ingle's tenure at Kennesaw State he also led the program from Division II to Division I, where the Owls are currently members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.

Jon Teitel: In 1971 at North Whitfield HS you were named First Team All-Tri State. How good a player were you back in the day, and how far did you think you could go as a player? 

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former North Dakota head coach Rich Glas. Now the head coach at Concordia College in Minnesota, Coach Glas won 335 games and three conference titles at North Dakota.

Jon Teitel: You first became a head coach in 1974 at Minnesota-Morris. What made you get into coaching, and how have you been able to stick with it for so long?

Rich Glas: It was always what I wanted to do. I grew up on a campus due to my dad's job, and I was always around sports.

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former Marist head coach Dave Magarity. Coach Magarity, who is now the head coach of the women's basketball program at Army, won 253 games and three conference titles (one NCAA appearance) while at Marist.  

Jon Teitel: In 1978 you became head coach at St. Francis and were the youngest Division I head coach in the nation. Did you feel that you were ready to be a head coach at age 27, and did you see your age as an advantage or a
disadvantage?

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN Jon Teitel spent some time with former High Point head coach Bart Lundy, who won 96 games in six seasons at the school. In his first season at High Point Coach Lundy and his staff led the team to the Big South Tournament title game, where they lost to Liberty. Lundy is now the Director of Basketball Operations at Marquette. 

Jon Teitel: You attended five different high schools while growing up in North Carolina. How on earth did that happen, and was it hard to keep moving around each year?  

In the latest installment in his "Coaching Greats" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with former UCF head coach Kirk Speraw, who led the Knights to four NCAA Tournament appearances and helped shepherd the program from the Atlantic Sun to Conference USA. Coach Speraw is now an assistant at his alma mater (Iowa) under Fran McCaffery, where he was also a graduate assistant on the 1980 team that reached the Final Four.

1980 NCAA Tournament (as a graduate assistant at Iowa for former coach Lute Olson)