Big Ten Rankings: Top head basketball coaches in the conference

By Connor Muldowney | Jun 27, 2015

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Feb 9, 2014; Madison, WI, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo talks with Wisconsin Badgers head coach Bo Ryan after their game at the Kohl Center. The Badgers won 60-58. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports

When you think of Big Ten rankings in college basketball, you think of the best teams in the nation piled into one conference. The Big Ten is often considered the top basketball conference in the country heading into each season and although last season it didn’t quite deliver, it did sent two teams to the Final Four and one — Wisconsin — to the national title game before falling short against Duke.

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Thinking along the lines of ranking the Big Ten teams, the head coaches of those programs need to be compared as well. Although the NBA Draft just took place, meaning the college basketball season is still a while from beginning, it seems like the perfect time to see where each of the top coaches in the conference rank among each other.

It may be relatively simple to guess the top-two or three coaches in the league, but the rest of the spread of top dogs seem to be relatively equal from the No. 5-10 spots.

Although I will be focusing on the top-half of the conferences coaches, there will still likely be a debate on whether some of the guys belong where they do in my rankings or if some have been missed altogether by myself.

The Big Ten doesn’t produce some of the nation’s best players, rivalries and teams without top-notch head coaches, so let’s look at which guys rank No. 1 through No. 7 in terms of success heading into the 2015-16 campaign.

Hint: No. 3 through No. 7 may just surprise you.

Next: 7. Fran McCaffery, Iowa

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