Morgantown, West Virginia – Bob Huggins is one of the greatest college basketball coaches ever, but he also had a pretty remarkable career as a player as well. ESPN released a list, ranking the 2021 NCAA Tournament coaches as players, #1 through #68.
Huggins was listed as the 9th best coach as a player behind only 1 – Patrick Ewing (Georgetown), 2 – Juwan Howard (Michigan), 3 – Bryce Drew (Grand Canyon), 4 – Mark Pope (BYU), 5 – Tony Bennett (Virginia), 6 – Cuonzo Martin (Missouri), 7 – Lon Kruger (Oklahoma) and 8 – Wayne Tinkle (Oregon State).
According to the article, “Huggins began his collegiate career at Ohio University in 1972, later transferring and playing three seasons at West Virginia under Joedy Gardner (1974-77). Huggins averaged 13.2 points and 3.8 assists as a senior, subsequently attending NBA training camp with the 76ers before being cut. A knee injury suffered when Huggins was hit by a car while bicycling weeks before the 1977 NBA draft curtailed his playing career.”
Notable coaches that Huggins beat out on the list include Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim (14), Kansas’ Bill Self (22), Oklahoma State’s Mike Boynton (24), Villanova’s Jay Wright (29), Iona’s Rick Pitino (30), Texas’ Shaka Smart (42), North Carolina’s Roy Williams (56), Gonzaga’s Mark Few (59), UCLA’s Mick Cronin (60), Texas Tech’s Chris Beard (66) and Baylor’s Scott Drew (67).
Check out the full list below:
.@CoachHuggs makes the Top 10, ranking coaches as players!https://t.co/NePvRRNrG7#HailWV
— WVU Men's Basketball (@WVUhoops) March 16, 2021
