Ranking the coaches in the MWC

Jack Christian by Contributor Written on October 15, 2009

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LAS VEGAS - DECEMBER 20:  Head coach Lon Kruger of the UNLV Rebels claps while taking on the Arzona Wildcats at the Thomas & Mack Center December 20, 2008 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Ethan Miller/Getty Images

I rank the coaches of the basketball teams in the Mountain West Conference from 1-9. The Mountain West Conference has some very good coaches with very impressive resumes along with some younger coaches trying upset the pecking order in the Mountain West Conference. Feel free to comment and disagree with how I have ranked the coaches.

#9 - Tim Miles

LAS VEGAS - MARCH 11:  Head coach Tim Miles of the Colorado State Rams reacts to a foul called against his team as they take on the Air Force Falcons during the first round of the Conoco Mountain West Conference Basketball Championships at the Thomas & Ma

Tim Miles is easily the worst coach in the MWC. In his first year he did not win a single conference game. The record was slightly better in his second year but I will be suprised if he is still coaching CSU in a year or two.

#8 - Jeff Reynolds

LAS VEGAS - MARCH 11:  Head coach Jeff Reynolds of the Air Force Falcons watches his players take on the Colorado State Rams during the first round of the Conoco Mountain West Conference Basketball Championships at the Thomas & Mack Center March 11, 2009

Had a winning season his first year but is in the middle of a rebuilding project. It will be interesting to see how long it will take Air Force to have a winning record again.

#7 - Heath Schroyer

LAS VEGAS - JANUARY 17:  Head coach Heath Schroyer of the Wyoming Cowboys looks on during a game against the UNLV Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center January 17, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. UNLV won 83-66.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

A decent young coach but may have to start pulling rabbits out hats to move up the list. 12 Wins in his first season was decent but as he brings in more of his own players he needs to start putting together some winning seasons.

#6 - Jim Christian

LAS VEGAS - MARCH 12:  Head coach Jim Christian of the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs applauds during a game against the Utah Utes during a quarterfinal game of the Conoco Mountain West Conference Basketball Championships at the Thomas & Mack Cen

Jim Christian did a pretty good job in his first year exceeding expectations. If he can build a winner in TCU he can definitely climb up the list. He needs to upgrade the talent through recruiting. Prior to coaching TCU he was the coach at Kent St. where he lost a first round game to UNLV and Lon Kruger.

#5 - Steve Alford

LAS VEGAS - JANUARY 03:  Head coach Steve Alford of the New Mexico Lobos watches his team take on the UNLV Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center January 3, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Rebels won 60-58.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Steve Alford's biggest impact so far has been to complain about UNLV host MWC tourney on its home floor. Memo to coach Alford - the tourney will not be leaving Las Vegas anytime soon, so quit whining and deal with it. Steve Alford has had some good recruiting classes but he needs to get to the NCAA tournament. He was also the former coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes before he was run out of town.

#4 - Jim Boylen

LAS VEGAS - MARCH 14:  Head coach Jim Boylen of the Utah Utes signals his players as they take on the San Diego State Aztecs during the championship game of the Conoco Mountain West Conference tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center March 14, 2009 in Las V

Jim Boylen has come into the conference with a bang. He led a senior laden to the MWC title and a 5 seed in the tourney only to lose in the first game. Now we will get to see if he can sustain the momentum from last season in what will surely be a rebuilding year.

#3 - Steve Fisher

DENVER - MARCH 11:  Head coach Steve Fisher of the San Diego State University Aztecs cuts down the net after defeating the Wyoming Cowboys 69-64 in the championship of the Mountain West Conference Basketball Tournament on March 11, 2006 at the Pepsi Cente

He has turned around SDSU basketball from a doormat to one of the most athletic teams on the west coast. He has recruited very well but his teams seam to always underachieve and never quite reach their potential. He is also ranked this high due to what he did at Michigan by winning a National title and recruiting the fab five.

#2 - Dave Rose

PHILADELPHIA - MARCH 19:  Dave Rose, head coach of the Brigham Young Cougars, communicates with the team during the first round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament against the Texas A&M Aggies at the Wachovia Center on March 19, 2009 in Phi

All the guy does is win. If his teams could win a game in the NCAA tourney he could eventually challenge Lon Kruger for the #1 spot. He has finished for 1st or second in the conference every year he has been coach. His teams play an attractive up-tempo style.

#1 - Lon Kruger

LAS VEGAS - JANUARY 03:  Head coach Lon Kruger of the UNLV Rebels talks to Oscar Bellfield #0 during a game against the New Mexico Lobos at the Thomas & Mack Center January 3, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Rebels won 60-58.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty

Lon Kruger is the only coach in the conference to win a game in the NCAA tourney in the last 3 years. His best coaching job was probably during the 07-08 season as he led a team that started someone nicknamed "wink", two walk-ons, a former air conditioning repairman, a 6' 7" sf at center and won a game in the NCAA tournament. He has had success at every college he has coached at.

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written on October 15, 2009 Rankings/List

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