College coaches by tenure: Nuggets and observations from Patrick Stevens' list

Steve Pikiell departing Stony Brook for Rutgers means John Dunne is not only elder statesman among MAAC coaches, as Saint Peter's coach is now longest-tenured mentor in New York metro area. (Photo by Vincent Simone/NYC Buckets)

It arrived a little later this year than last, but as they say, better late than never.

The "it" in question is the annual list of college basketball head coaches ranked by tenure, compiled once again by Patrick Stevens of D1scourse.com. While maintenance of the status quo still exists at the top, with Syracuse's Jim Boeheim; now about to enter his 41st season at the helm of his alma mater, at the top, a grand total of 55 positions changed hands this offseason. Louisiana Tech's Eric Konkol, last year's low man on the totem pole, has jumped all the way up to No. 296, with the last of 351 on the 2016-17 ledger being newly installed head man Tim Jankovich, the former Illinois State boss who succeeded Larry Brown at SMU in July after spending four years as Brown's coach-in-waiting and designated replacement in Dallas.

As mentioned in the cover photo caption, the New York metro area has a new dean of coaches, that being Saint Peter's John Dunne. Less than three months away from commencing his 11th season on the bench in Jersey City, Dunne takes over the role of flag bearer from Steve Pikiell, who left Stony Brook for Rutgers this past March after finally delivering the Seawolves' first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance at the Division I level.

This year's median coach, No. 176 on the list, is Brown's Mike Martin, hired by the Bears on June 1, 2012. Ten of the local coaches were hired prior to Martin, with Kevin Willard ranking second behind the aforementioned Dunne. Willard begins his seventh season at Seton Hall, where his Pirates will defend the Big East championship for the first time since 1993.

There is more of a change at the top this season, even though the first nine spots remain unchanged from last year's list. Scott Nagy, last year's No. 10, left South Dakota State after 21 years to take over at Wright State this offseason, which places Tom Izzo within the ranks of the top ten as he prepares for his 22nd campaign at Michigan State. In addition, Howie Dickenman; who was the 13th-longest-tenured head coach last year, vacates his spot after retiring following a 20-year career at Central Connecticut State.

The ranking of last season's Final Four coaches jumps up a bit from the previous year, with an average of 42.75 compared to the 2015-2016 figure of 35.5. Oklahoma's Lon Kruger, owner of the No. 122 spot, is the primary reason for the higher number, with Boeheim, Jay Wright and Roy Williams all residing inside the top 28.

Finally, here is a listing of the local coaches, as well as some other coaches within this site's sphere of influence, broken down by their list numbers and hire dates, as well as a change in position where applicable:

Local Coaches

57) John Dunne, Saint Peter's (May 23, 2006, +13 positions)

T-93) Kevin Willard, Seton Hall (March 29, 2010, +27)

98) Tim Cluess, Iona (April 8, 2010, +28)

108) Glenn Braica, St. Francis Brooklyn (May 20, 2010, +34)

T-119) King Rice, Monmouth (March 30, 2011, +35)

T-124) Sydney Johnson, Fairfield (April 4, 2011, +36)

131) Steve Masiello, Manhattan (April 11, 2011, +37)

132) Mitch Henderson, Princeton (April 20, 2011, +32)

T-155) Bashir Mason, Wagner (March 26, 2012, +40)

T-165) Jack Perri, LIU Brooklyn (April 10, 2012, +44)

T-174) Kevin Baggett, Rider (May 24, 2012, +46)

200) Joe Mihalich, Hofstra (April 10, 2013, +51)

T-208) Greg Herenda, Fairleigh Dickinson (April 26, 2013, +53)

213) Anthony Latina, Sacred Heart (May 30, 2013, +53)

255) Mike Maker, Marist (June 17, 2014, +54)

T-268) Jeff Neubauer, Fordham (March 30, 2015, +54)

T-273) Chris Mullin, St. John's (March 31, 2015, +54)

T-308) Steve Pikiell, Rutgers (March 22, 2016, -259)

326) Jim Engles, Columbia (April 3, 2016, -234)

336) Jeff Boals, Stony Brook (April 9, 2016, not ranked last year)

337) Brian Kennedy, NJIT (April 12, 2016, NR)

Big East

20) Jay Wright, Villanova (March 27, 2001, +1)

34) John Thompson III, Georgetown (April 20, 2004, +6)

88) Chris Mack, Xavier (April 14, 2009, +25)

T-93) Kevin Willard, Seton Hall (March 29, 2010, +27)

T-104) Greg McDermott, Creighton (April 26, 2010, +32)

113) Ed Cooley, Providence (March 22, 2011, +34)

T-229) Steve Wojciechowski, Marquette (April 1, 2014, +54)

259) Chris Holtmann, Butler (October 2, 2014, +54)

267) Dave Leitao, DePaul (March 29, 2011, +54)

T-273) Chris Mullin, St. John's (March 31, 2015, +54)

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

57) John Dunne, Saint Peter's (May 23, 2006, +13)

61) Tom Moore, Quinnipiac (March 29, 2007, +14)

98) Tim Cluess, Iona (April 8, 2010, +28)

T-119) King Rice, Monmouth (March 30, 2011, +35)

T-124) Sydney Johnson, Fairfield (April 4, 2011, +36)

131) Steve Masiello, Manhattan (April 11, 2011, +37)

T-174) Kevin Baggett, Rider (May 24, 2012, +46)

T-192) Jimmy Patsos, Siena (April 3, 2013, +50)

207) Chris Casey, Niagara (April 22, 2013, +51)

255) Mike Maker, Marist (June 17, 2014, +54)

350) Reggie Witherspoon, Canisius (May 28, 2016, NR)

Other
15) James Jones, Yale (April 27, 1999, +3)

22) Will Brown, Albany (December 20, 2001, +5)