Most Oklahoma State Coaches Don’t Win In First Hoops Season

With basketball season tipping off this Friday, the hardwood buzz is palpable among the Oklahoma State fan base. Our recent poll showed that nearly half of you said you were more excited for basketball than football. Wow.

First-year head coach Brad Underwood brings in a completely new system based on swarming defense and an offense predicated on constant movement with and without the ball.

Most of all, he brings a winning mentality and an edge. There are other reasons for optimism, as well.

That blow-out preseason victory over Pittsburg State gave us a peek at the potential of freshmen like Lindy Waters, Cam McGriff and Brandon Averette.

The Cowboys also welcome back Big 12 Freshman of the Year Jawun Evans and fifth-year sharpshooter Phil Forte who are now healthy and should headline an exciting offense.

But before we crown the Cowboys as Big 12 champs and fill out the first three levels of our tourney brackets, it’s important that we temper our expectations with a dash of reality.

It takes time to turn a program around, even one with high-end facilities and some talent on the roster. Out of the eighteen men’s basketball head coaches in OSU history, only three have started out with a winning season:

• Eddie Sutton
• Sean Sutton
• Travis Ford

It’s important to note that all three of those coaches took over teams that sported a winning record the previous year.

Eddie Sutton came back to his alma mater an established coach toting a 430-164 record (.724). His first year (1990-91), he went 24-8 (10-4, first in the Big 8) after Leonard Hamilton’s Cowboys went 17-14 (6-8) and finished 5th in the league the year before.

Sean Sutton went 22-13 (6-10) but finished 7th in the Big 12 after his dad’s last OSU team finished 17-16 (6-10) also seventh in the league.

When the latter Sutton unceremoniously left Oklahoma State with another 17-16 (7-9) 7th-ranked team, Travis Ford took over and compiled a fourth-place Big-12 finish going 23-12 (9-7 in conference).

So what should we expect from Brad Underwood’s first year in Stillwater? We know he’s a winner. In his three years at Stephen F. Austin he amassed a ridiculous 89-14 record (.864). Will his success transfer to the Big 12? I tend to think so.

But he does not take over a winning team. The injury-stricken Cowboys went an abysmal 12-20 last year overall and 3-15 in conference play.

This year’s Cowboy squad was picked to finish tied for seventh in the Big 12 by the coaches. Last year, Texas Tech was 7th going 9-9 in conference and 19-13 overall. Maybe that’s a little low. Maybe not.

A couple of important numbers to remember

Two. The number of OSU head coaches to finish above .500 in conference play their first year. One is the standard for most living Cowboy fans, Eddie Sutton and the other is the much-maligned coach Underwood is replacing.

Zero. The number of OSU head coaches to finish with an overall winning record after taking over a sub-.500 team from the previous year. it has never happened.

Underwood hopes to be the first head coach to accomplish this in Stillwater. Henry Iba got close back in the 1934-35 season but finished an even 9-9 after taking over Harold James’ 4-14 team.

A winning season is definitely not out of the question for Underwood, given his track record and seemingly talented roster, but historically it’s not guaranteed.