Ranking College Coaches - ACC Men's Basketball

If you cant tell, we love lists and rankings here at The Walk On Blog. To kick off our college basketball coverage on the page, we want to take a look at the coaches across the country and see how they stack up against each of their in-conference opponents. Here, we start with the ACC, because why not?

15. Steve Forbes (Wake Forrest)

Forbes is the newest head coach in the ACC as he was hired to replace Danny Manning after this season was finished. Forbes was named the Southern Conference's coach of the year for the 2019-2020 season, but other than his stint as the head man at East Tennessee State, Forbes doesn't have any other D-1 head coaching experience. I'm not discounting Forbes' talent as a coach, he is just unproven. Therefore, he finds himself at the bottom of the list.

14. Jim Christian (Boston College)

Since his time in Chestnut Hill began in 2014, Christian has been unable to achieve a winning conference record. In fact, in his time there, BC has only had one season where they finished with a winning overall record (2017-18). Christian's time may be coming to a close at Boston College and there is not much evidence as to why they even kept him this year.

13. Mike Young (Virginia Tech)

Young had a great run at Wofford, making the NCAA tournament 4 times. But, it took some time for the success to come around. It took him eight years to win the conference once. Maybe the same can be expected with Young's time with VaTech. The Hokies always seem to be in the middle of the pack in the ACC and this was the same for Young's first season. Things could improve, but this is not the Southern Conference.

12. Brad Brownell (Clemson)

Clemson had one of their best seasons under Brownell in 2017-18 when they finished 3rd in the conference and made a run to the Sweet 16 where they lost to Kansas. In his 11 years, Brownell has had three seasons where the Tigers finished with a winning record in conference play. Again, the ACC has been a gauntlet for years, but how long will Clemson allow him to coach the team? I say that if doesn't make the tournament in the next two years, Brownell is gone. 11 years is a long time to hinge your tenure on one Sweet 16 appearance.

11. Kevin Keatts (NC State)

When Keatts was hired, one of the phrases that many Pack fans dubbed for the coach was, "Kevin Keatts is a winner." Technically, TECHNICALLY, they have a point as he has winning record in all three seasons and has been semi-successful in his match-ups with the big boys of Duke and UNC as their in-state rivals. The recruiting trail has been bumpy for Keatts, but as his time at the school continues, he could put something really special together in Raleigh.

10. Jeff Capel III (Pittsburgh)

Jeff Capel may not be the longest tenured head coach in the ACC, but before his Pitt days, he was an assistant at Duke for six years. People also forget that Capel was the head man at Oklahoma and VCU with his best season coming with Blake Griffin in 2009 when the Sooners made the Elite 8 before losing to eventual national champion UNC. Capel is a capable recruiter and needs a few more years to get Pittsburgh up and running.

9. Josh Pastner (Georgia Tech)

This past year was the best year Pastner has had with the Yellow Jackets, posting a winning record both overall and in conference. I'd also like to point out that GT had absolutely nothing to play for since they were under a postseason ban this season. Anytime a coach can have his squad rally to win even though it seems like they should roll over is impressive to me. Next year, Pastner must improve and show that last year was not a fluke.

8. Jim Larrañaga (Miami)

Believe it or not, in his nine years at Miami, Larrañaga has been all over the map, struggling to put together two good years together. He does have one ACC championship under his belt, but that was all the way back in 2013. Even then, the Hurricanes have not been able to make it past the Sweet 16 in Larrañaga's four tournament appearances with Miami. It's my belief that Jim is way past his prime in coaching. Say what you want about being able to recruit at a football school because in-state rival Florida State seems to be doing just fine.

7. Chris Mack (Louisville)

Mack knew how tough the ACC was before he became the head man at Louisville since he was an assistant at Wake from 2001-04. In his two stints as Xavier, Mack missed the tournament only once in 2013. His first two years with the Cardinals have proved fruitful as the program is now easing past the Pitino scandal. Mack's high intensity coaching and defensive schemes fit in perfectly with the conference and even though he hasn't brought in all the high level recruits, he finds a way to make it all work. Mack is well on his way to becoming one of the most successful coaches in this conference.

6. Leonard Hamilton (Florida State)

Not many coaches in the ACC finish with a winning record in conference, especially if they coach for more than 10 years. Well, enter Leonard Hamilton, who has been with the Seminoles for 18 seasons, leading them to the tournament 7 times. Many were calling for Hamilton to be fired after the 2016 season after finishing 11th in ACC play. However, FSU kept him and they haven't missed the tournament yet. Florida State was very disappointing after March Madness was cancelled after they won the ACC regular season crown this past season. Hamilton will have his boys ready to rock and roll this season as well.

5. Mike Brey (Notre Dame)

You know when announcers say that "coaches get everything out of their players?" Yeah, that's Mike Brey. This guys also is able to do SO MUCH considering how little he has. The last three years for Brey have not been the most glorious of his tenure but he has an ACC championship banner from 2015 to hang his hat on. Once Brey reloads with his current recruiting class, he'll have the Irish back in the tournament in no time.

4. Jim Boeheim (Syracuse)

You can't argue with 33 tournament appearances. Like, you just can't. Boeheim's one national championship was back in 2003 back when Syracuse was a part of the Big East. Yet, his legacy continues on - with a final four appearance with his squad in 2016. I'd love to see Jim have one more big run before he calls it quits - which might be sooner, rather than later.

3. Tony Bennett (Virginia)

While Tony hasn't been here as long as some of the other men on the top of this list, his success is nearly unmatched in his last seven seasons, winning the conference 4 times and adding a national championship last year. Bennett's style is a nice change of pace from the largely up and down, fast paced offenses of the top of the conference. Virginia's suffocating defense has confused many and angered more, setting up the Hoos for success. Can Bennett keep it up? I don't know, but until he doesn't, UVA is going to win a lot of games. Like, a lot.

2. Roy Williams (North Carolina)

Since his return to Chapel Hill in 2003, Roy Williams has been the most successful coach in Tar Heel history. Yes, more than Dean Smith. Though, to his credit, there is no Williams without Smith. Three national championships and nine regular season ACC titles to go along with three tournament titles. You can disagree with Roy's methods (timeouts and big men lineups), but you cannot argue with the results. Sure, you can be an idiot and act like UNC won't rebound after the terrible year they had this past season, but you would be lying to yourself. Williams will have the Tar Heels at or near the top of the ACC in 2020-21 and everyone better be ready. Also - Coach, keep the beard.

1. Mike Krzyzewski (Duke)

The most decorated coach in college basketball is still kicking it in the ACC and doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon, much to the dismay of every other program in the conference. Coach K has recreated his approach to coaching and has conformed to each generation of basketball as it comes along, which has added to his success. The last couple of years have been slight disappointments, only because Duke did not produce national championships. Krzyzewski's last was in 2015 and I imagine that it will only be a few more years before he adds a 6th as he continues to wipe the floor in recruiting.

What'd you think? Who should be higher, lower? Next week we're heading northwest for the Big 10! See ya then.

Author: Jordan Riddick