Two Sundays ago, as I was watching Lee Westwood essentially choke away an opportunity to shed the label of “best golfer never to win a major”, it dawned upon me to create this post. Locally on the East Coast, there are a few bright, young coaches that haven’t been able to break through and get to the NCAA tournament, so I decided to comprise a list of the best active coaches never to qualify for the Big Dance.

With most, if not all, of these coaches, they likely won’t find themselves on a list like this for too long. But for now, these coaches must continue to forge ahead without that elusive “NCAA appearance” etched on their resume. John and I present to you our top 10.

10) Mitch Henderson, Princeton
Career record: 37-23
Henderson’s body of work as the main man in Princeton isn’t robust with only 60 career games. But after back-to-back 10-4 seasons in the Ivy League, it’s becoming clear this guy can flat out coach. Season number three will be quite interesting without the services of Ian Hummer, but it wouldn’t surprise us if the long time Northwestern assistant someday follows the career path of his predecessors Sydney Johnson and John Thompson III. If only mid-major powerhouse Harvard didn’t stand in the way, things could be a little easier for the Tigers.

9) Tom Moore, Quinnipiac
Career record: 108-81 (1 NEC regular season championship, 1 NIT, CIT, and CBI appearance)
At the mid-major level, no one has gotten his team to play better in the month of February than Moore. Since becoming Quinnipiac’s head coach in 2007, the Bobcats have posted a splendid 36-12 record in February. The following month, on the other hand, has given Moore a healthy dose of disappointment. In their last four NEC tournaments, the Bobcats have fallen to the eventual champion – Robert Morris and LIU Brooklyn each twice – by a combined scoring margin of 15 points. It’ll only get more difficult for Moore and company next season as the newest members of the MAAC, but the relentless former Jim Calhoun assistant may be cutting down the nets someday soon.

8) Michael White, Louisiana Tech
Career record: 45-23 (1 WAC regular season championship, 1 NIT appearance)
After White guided Louisiana Tech to the most regular season victories (26) in school history, the Bulldogs were stunned in the first round of the WAC tournament, falling to the #9 seed Texas – San Antonio. The Bulldogs recovered nicely by upsetting Florida State in the first round of the NIT, yet White fell short of getting his program to the NCAAs for the first time since 1991. He’s since signed an extension, and the Bulldogs return eight of their top nine players from last season. In other words, Louisiana Tech and White should make some noise in the more competitive Conference USA.

7) Dan Hurley, Rhode Island
Career record: 46-44
Dan Hurley, a coach college basketball fans are programmed to either love or hate, was perhaps the most speculative pick of this group. Quite frankly, Hurley still has a lot to prove in the Atlantic 10 as his staff attempts to rebuild a Rams program that hasn’t qualified for the NCAA tournament since 1999. (You remember embattled head coach Jim Harrick, don’t you?) While at Wagner, Hurley elevated the program to a level no one was expecting – a 25-6 record in the 2011-12 season. That season wasn’t a fluke either – ask most NEC head coaches and they’ll privately tell you that Hurley was one of the most respected and feared coaches in the conference during his brief stay.

6) Doug Wojcik, College of Charleston
Career record: 164-103 (2 NIT appearances, 2 CBI appearances)
An offseason ago, Wojcik was run out of Tulsa for failing to propel the Golden Hurricane to the big dance, before settling at College of Charleston. (He surely won’t run into Memphis there, who Wojcik was a putrid 1-14 against.) He may be the only coach on this list who was fired, but he also owns one of the best winning percentages of this group. Five 20 win seasons and four postseason tournament appearances is nothing to scoff at, and Wojcik had Tulsa consistently ranked in the KenPom Top 100 during his tenure. One of these years, a NCAA tournament appearance is bound to happen and it may be more likely in the CAA.

5) Bob Hoffman, Mercer
Career record: 167-150 (1 Atlantic Sun regular season championship, 1 NIT and CIT appearance)
Before Hoffman appeared, Mercer basketball experienced a meager three seasons of winning basketball, in their previous 23 years. The former Texas-Pan American head coach has catapulted Mercer to an 89-53 mark since taking over, easily the best stretch of basketball in program history. Last season, his team was a great second half away from their first NCAA tournament since 1985, but Florida Gulf Coast (you may remember them as Dunk City) beat Mercer in the finals of the Atlantic Sun tournament. With only Travis Smith graduating, Hoffman could find his name in the spotlight come March, much like Andy Enfield did this past season.

4) Ed Cooley, Providence
Career record: 126-101 (2 NIT appearances, 1 CIT appearance)
You won’t find many head coaches leading a power conference squad on this list, mainly because getting to March Madness shouldn’t be all that difficult for those programs. With Cooley entering his third season at Providence, however, he’s been given the benefit of the doubt based on the degree of difficulty in elevating the Friars to the upper echelon of the Big East. Cooley is one heck of a recruiter, but he’ll need better fortune (see Ledo, Ricky) to succeed in what projects to be a brutal basketball conference. Three postseason appearances in four seasons isn’t bad, but at the Big East level, Friar fans will become antsy in a hurry if Cooley doesn’t enhance his coaching resume with a NCAA appearance very soon.

3) Andy Toole, Robert Morris
Career record: 68-36 (1 NEC regular season championship, 1 NIT and CIT appearance)
While Robert Morris received national fame with their upset victory over Kentucky in the first round of last season’s NIT, the Colonials still fell short of their ultimate goal of reaching the NCAA tournament. Toole has gotten his Colonials to the precipice in all three of his seasons, remarkably from age 29-32. Still, the young coach has endured three grueling losses in the NEC tournament, with the latest surprisingly coming at the hands of Mount St. Mary’s. Despite the early spring hardships, Toole was given a good look by Siena for their vacant position before signing Jimmy Patsos, and it certainly won’t be the last time he’s near the top of any program’s head coaching wish list.

2) Cuonzo Martin, Tennessee
Career record: 100-69 (1 MVC regular season championship, 3 NIT appearances, 1 CIT appearance)
The only other power conference coach you’ll find here is Martin, who inherited a Tennessee program that was left in the wake of Bruce Pearl’s BBQ inspired mess. Since taking over after guiding Missouri State to 26 victories in the difficult Missouri Valley Conference, Martin has stabilized the program, winning 20 games and nine of his final 12 en route to a second consecutive NIT appearance. Of course, annual NIT trips aren’t acceptable for Volunteer Nation, but with Tennessee’s top four scorers returning, we don’t expect Martin to be on this list for much longer.

1) Steve Pikiell, Stony Brook
Career record: 120-126 (3 America East regular season championships, 3 NIT appearances)
Pikiell’s career record is misleading, after all he inherited a program badly struggling to make the transition to Division I basketball. Despite winning only 20 games in his first three seasons at the helm, Pikiell has turned the Seawolves into an America East powerhouse, going 100-59 since. In that time, Stony Brook has won three regular season championships, yet hasn’t broken though in their postseason tournament to punch their ticket. Last year seemed brutally harsh – the Seawolves fell victim to the small-conference entertainment complex, losing in the America East semifinals to #4 seeded Albany in their own building. One of these seasons, Pikiell’s transformation of the Stony Brook program will be complete, and it’s our guess Seawolf fans will see their team dancing in the NCAAs next March.

Also Considered:
Rob Senderoff, Kent State
Billy Donlon, Wright State
Steve Masiello, Manhattan
Derek Kellogg, UMass

Did we overlook a coach or do you disagree with the rankings? Feel free to let us know your feedback in the comments section!

You can follow Ryan on Twitter @pioneer_pride. You can e-mail Ryan at shupioneerpride@gmail.com.