When Baylor’s Scott Drew, Gonzaga’s Mark Few, Houston’s Kelvin Sampson and UCLA’s Mick Cronin gathered in Indianapolis for the 2021 Final Four, it was an unquestioned assemblage of four of the finest and most respected coaches in men’s college basketball.
What it wasn’t, however, was a reunion of former playing greats — three of last year’s Final Four coaches never played a second of college basketball. Few and Cronin suffered high school injuries that prevented them from pursuing college hoops. Drew played tennis in college. Sampson played basketball but was neither a star nor a household name during his playing days at UNC Pembroke.
If two Final Fours can really be called a trend, and we say they absolutely can, it would be appropriate to note that seven of the past eight Division I Final Four coaches did not play Division I college basketball. Chris Beard, late of 2019 national runner-up Texas Tech, did not play at Texas. Bruce Pearl, who nearly got Auburn to the 2019 title game,…
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