Youngest head coaches to win March Madness: Where does Todd Golden fall on list?
Florida basketball's Todd Golden looks to become the youngest head coach since Jim Valvano on Monday to win the men's NCAA Tournament. Who are the others? Here's what to know.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect Florida's national championship win on Monday. A previous file of this story was published earlier on Monday.
In just three short seasons, Todd Golden has returned the Florida basketball program back to competing at a national championship-caliber level.
Fresh off a come-from-behind win against SEC foe Auburn in the Final Four of the men's NCAA Tournament, the Gators coach has led Florida to a national championship title, which they won Monday against No. 1 Houston.
The win on Monday at the Alamodome in San Antonio not only put Golden's name in the same conversation as Billy Donovan as the only two Florida coaches to win a national title, but it also made him the youngest coach since Jim Valvano to cut down the nets in March Madness history.
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Here's what you need to know on the youngest coaches to win the NCAA Tournament:
Who is the youngest coach to win March Madness?
As noted by the NCAA Final Four record book, the youngest coach to win the men's NCAA Tournament is former Indiana coach Branch McCraken, who was 31 years, 9 months and 21 days old when he led the Hoosiers to their first national title in 1940.
Todd Golden age
Golden is 39 years old. As previously noted by Paste BN, Golden is one of 13 head coaches under the age of 40 who have taken a team to the Final Four since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams ahead of the 1984-85 season.
Youngest coaches to win March Madness
With Florida's national championship win vs. Houston, Golden became the youngest coach since Valvano to lead a program to the mountain top of men's college basketball.
Here's a list of the youngest coaches to win the NCAA Tournament, per the NCAA Final Four record book:
- 1. Branch McCraken (Indiana): 31 years, 9 months, 21 days
- 2. Harold Foster (Wisconsin): 34 years, 9 months, 29 days
- 3. Fred Taylor (Ohio State): 35 years, 3 months, 16 days
- 4. Bob Knight (Indiana): 35 years, 5 months, 4 days
- 5. Howard Dobson (Oregon): 35 years, 8 months, 23 days
- 6. Don Haskins (UTEP): 36 years, 0 months, 5 days
- 7. Jim Valvano (NC State): 37 years, 0 months, 24 days
- 8. Todd Golden (Florida): 39 years, 8 months