Top 2025 Mid-Major Coaching Hires
With over 50 coaching changes this offseason, five new head coaches stand out among the non-power conference ranks. Explore what makes these coaches special.
There were over 50 coaching changes this season matching a similar trend from the year prior as programs are shortening the leashes on their coaching staffs with the additional of NIL. The expectations have never been higher and some programs are getting creative with their hires. As the power conference schools grab elite coaches from the lower ranks, it opens up opportunities for coaches at the Division II ranks, assistant coaches, and smaller conferences to help further their careers.
Let’s take a look at five of the best hires for non-power conference schools.
Eric Henderson - Drake
Drake has been quite the stepping stone for head coaches. Ben McCollum jumped from Drake to Iowa after year one. Darian Devries jumped from Drake to West Virginia to Indiana back-to-back years. Niko Medved jumped to Colorado State and now Minnesota. Now, Eric Henderson who is yet another proven winner is taking over the reigns in Des Moines.
Henderson has spent the last six seasons at South Dakota State where he has amassed a 129-60 record. He led the team to two NCAA Tournaments, including 2022 when he finished the season 30-5 and a perfect 18-0 in the Summit League. Needless to say…he wins just like Ben McCollum did.
Bulldogs fans will be in for a change of pace next season. Last year, McCollum ran a fundamentals first offense with a slow tempo. In fact, Drake finished 364th in tempo last year. In Henderson’s six years at South Dakota State, the Jack Rabbits have finished in the top 100 of tempo in four seasons.
Looking at the roster from afar, Henderson has already brought in nine new players for next season. Two players are transferring in from the power conferences in Okku Federiko from South Carolina and Wilguens Jr. Exacte from Utah. Owen Larson is following his coach over from South Dakota State after a successful freshman season where he averaged 9.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. Jaehshon Thomas is coming over after a strong year at Charlotte where he shot 42% overall and 36.8% from the floor. Loyola Chicago Rambler Jalen Quinn is an underrated pickup alongside Braden Appelhans out of New Mexico and Isaiah Carr from Denver.
There is a lot to like about how the Drake Bulldogs are shaping up for next season and Eric Henderson is going to help keep Drake at the top of the Missouri Valley.
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Mike Magpayo - Fordham
You might not know it, but UC Riverside has had their first two 20+ win seasons over the past three years underneath Mike Magpayo. Magpayo played at UC Santa Barbara and previously served as an assistant coach at Columbia, Campbell, and UC Riverside. He took over as head coach in 2020 where he put together an 89-63 record across five seasons. Since going Division I in 2001, the Highlanders had just two seasons finishing over .500 prior to Magpayo, who finished below .500 just once.
Under Magpayo, the Highlanders featured a slower tempo where they typically finished around the 200 or lower range per KenPom. From an offensive and defensive perspective, he doesn’t follow one or the other consistently. Instead, he shapes his strategy around the players that he builds the roster with.
Fordham’s hire here is going to be very underrated. However, it’s important to remember that Fordham is going to undergo some sanctions for “recruiting violations” under Keith Urgo. They will face a two-year show-clause penalty, as well as, higher regulation over three years. This was due to spending $10,736 between paid outings at bowling alleys, the Knicks, Giants, Nets, and UC Open events, as well as photos at Times Square. In an era of NIL where the power schools are featuring nearly $10m rosters…apparently $10,736 in recruiting costs is an important violation.
Looking at their roster, Magpayo has already brought in eleven new players. Seven of these players are coming in as juniors or above in age, so the team is going to have some veteran experience. Dejour Reaves averaged 17.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 2.1 steals on 44.9% shooting at Iona. Zarique Nutter averaged 14.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists at Georgia State. Christian Henry averaged 14.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.3 steals at Eastern Michigan. Louis Lesmond and Marcus Greene both played important roles in the rotations for Harvard and Hawaii last year. Those five are just scratching the surface on what on paper is a talented roster.
Prior to the 2022-2023 season, the Rams hadn’t won 20+ games since 1991. They hadn’t finished .500 since 2016 and they haven’t reached the NCAA Tournament since 1992. This is a program that is vying for a coach to finally right the ship and Magpayo has a good chance to be that guy for the Rams.
Ryan Miller - Murray State
We have two Missouri Valley head coaches on this list as Ryan Miller from Murray State has been incredible. The former Creighton assistant wasted no time to take advantage the historic Murray State program that is drooling for another run in the NCAA Tournament. He’s added a number of high impact players including: Layne Taylor, Javon Jackson, Frederick King, KJ Tenner, and more.
Miller has a long resume as he started out as an assistant coach at Memphis in 2004. He’s bounced around Pepperdine, New Mexico, Auburn, UNLV, TCU, and Creighton as an assistant coach, associate head coach, and assistant head coach. He’s worked for John Calipari, Steve Alford, and Greg McDermott. Needless to say, Miller has gained some valuable experience and it was a matter of time before he took over the reigns.
If you are interested to learn more about Murray State’s success in the transfer portal, you can read our article below:
Gus Argenal - UC Riverside
UC Riverside decided to follow a recent trend of hiring successful coaches from the non-division I level. Gus Argenal spent the last two seasons as the head coach of Cal State San Bernardino where he finished 50-20 and reached the NCAA Division II Final Four and Second Round. Prior to his stint at Cal State, he served as an assistant coach for Eric Musselman on both the Nevada and Arkansas teams that Musselman led.
It’s no coincidence that we are listing the former UC Riverside head coach and now the new coach. This is a program that is starting to turn it around. Argenal has already brought in eleven new players. He’s put together a strong combination of JUCO and under-utilized players who have shown potential for higher ceilings. For example, Marqui Worthy averaged 5.8 points, 1.9 assists, and 1.5 rebounds last season for UMass in just 18.2 minutes while shooting 40.9%. Denzel Hines averaged 7.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 23.1 minutes per game for Coastal Carolina. Osiris Grady averaged 5.6 points and 2.7 rebounds per game for Utah Valley in just 18.1 minutes. All three were just sophomores.
The Big West is going to be a solid non-power conference yet again next season, and it’s not out of the question that Argenal can finish at a minimum .500 or better in year one as a Division I head coach.
Andy Bronkema - Central Michigan
Yet another fun non-Division I hire is Andy Bronkema for Central Michigan. Bronkema spent twelve seasons as the head coach of Ferris State where he went to the NCAA Division II tournament nine times, he made the Sweet 16 three times, the Elite Eight twice, and won the National Championship in 2018. This was between two of now Iowa head coach Ben McCollum’s National Championships at Northwest Missouri State.
Central Michigan is following the format of simply hiring coaches that win. Bronkema has twelve new players coming in and there are some intriguing pieces. One of my favorite pickups just came in as he got a commitment from Keenan Garner out of IU Indy. Following the coaching change, Garner was a late addition to the portal. As a freshman, he averaged just 5.3 points and 4.8 rebounds in 19.5 minutes. He has some high upside potential in my opinion.
The majority of his roster in year one is coming from the Division II ranks, but these are players coming from top tier programs at that level. While year one will serve most likely as a transition year, but the Cippewas should be competitive in the MAC next season.
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