Bob Huggins, Players React to Huggins Becoming Winningest Active Coach in D-I

KANSAS CITY — As long-time Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim retired on Wednesday afternoon, that made WVU’s Bob Huggins the most winningest active head coach in all Division-I basketball. Huggins has 935 career wins.

“I don’t really pay attention to that stuff,” Huggins said postgame. “I don’t know. It means I’m old, I guess.”

Boeheim meant a lot to Huggins in regard to the game of basketball. Boeheim coached at Syracuse starting in 1976. Huggins never forgets to remind Boeheim that he played against him when he was coaching.

“He’s a basketball diehard. He was coaching when I was playing,” Huggins said. “He’s a great guy, fun guy to be around. I think a lot of times people misunderstand how he is.”

Huggins, who is third all-time on the wins list, has touched many lives of collegiate basketball players for the past 40 years. Two of his current players, Emmitt Matthews and James Okonkwo, shared what it means to play for Huggins.

“That’s my guy. All the credit, give it to him. He has a great circle of people around him, a great coaching staff. He’ll be coaching for a long time,” Matthews said. “I saw his quote earlier about I guess that means I’m getting old. There are coaches out there that are older than him that have way less wins than him. He’s a great coach. Love him to death. I want him to get to 1,000 [wins].”

“He’ll probably downplay it but we’re all incredibly proud of him. He definitely deserves it, sacrificed a lot to be where he is right now,” Okonkwo added.

Huggins has reached a lot of milestones in the past two years: 900 wins, being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, third-winningest coach. And now Huggins can say he’s the most winningest active coach in America.