Young And Old, Coaches Can Be Great At Any Age
A coach recently posed the question to me: Who are the top young coaches in the country? Guys 40 years of age or younger. It wasn't an easy answer beyond the one no-brainer name of Butler's Brad Stevens.
As sensible as this list is, I have to ask: Where's Bruce Weber? Kidding. Seriously though: what about Bo Ryan?
It got me thinking of who are the most accomplished coaches in the country in each age group. Some age groups (the 50 to 60 range) were easier than others -- and Gary Williams certainly would have made the list if he hadn't called it a career this past offseason.
The most difficult decisions came with the 40 to 50 age group, but here goes -- broken down into five different age segments:
Tom Izzo, Michigan State: His win total isn't up there with some of the other guys on this list, but he has won a national title and has gone to six Final Fours in the past 13 seasons -- at a place that's not considered one of the elite 10 or so jobs in America.
Age: 56
Career record: 383-161 (16 seasons)
National championships: 1
Final Four appearances: 6
