Dustin Kerns
Dustin Kerns (born February 1, 1980)
Current position: Head men’s basketball coach
Current team: Appalachian State Mountaineers
Current conference: Sun Belt Conference
Presbyterian record: 31-37 (.456)
Appalachian State record: 97-65 (.599)
Overall record: 128-102 (.557)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 1 (2021)
- NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 0
- NIT Championships: 0
- NIT Appearances: 1 (2024)
- CIT/TBC Appearances: 2 (2019, 2022)
- Sun Belt Regular Season Champion: 1 (2024)
- Sun Belt Tournament Champion: 1 (2021)
Awards:
- Sun Belt Coach of the Year: 1 (2024)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
2019-present | Appalachian State |
2017-2019 | Presbyterian |
2013-2017 | Wofford (asst) |
2007-2013 | Santa Clara (asst) |
2004-2007 | Wofford (asst) |
2003-2004 | Tennessee (grad. asst) |
2002-2003 | Tennessee Tech (DBO) |
Dustin Kerns Facts
- Dustin Kerns
- Born February 1, 1980
- Hometown: Kingsport, Tennessee
- Alma Mater: Clemson University (BA, 2002) / University of Tennessee (MS, 2004)
- After playing at Dobyns-Bennett HS (TN), Kerns attended Clemson and served as a manager under head coach Larry Shyatt
- Spent three summers coaching at the Michael Jordan Flight School (2001-03)
- Started his coaching career in 2002, spending one year as DBO at Tennessee Tech under Mike Sutton, followed by one year as a graduate assistant under Bruce Pearl at Tennessee
- Became a full-time assistant in 2004, spending three years on Mike Young‘s staff at Wofford
- Moved out West in 2007 where he would serve as an assistant under Kerry Keating for six seasons at Santa Clara
- Returned to Wofford in 2013 for a second stint on Young‘s staff, working there another four seasons (seven total)
- Hired in May 2017 to become the head coach at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC, his first head coaching opportunity
- Went 31-37 over two seasons, improving from 11 wins in his first season to 20 in his second
- Left Presbyterian in March 2019 to become the head coach at Appalachian State
- In his second season, Kerns led the Mountaineers to the NCAA Tournament via the 2021 Sun Belt Tournament crown
- In 2024, Kerns and App State won the Sun Belt regular season title for the first time in program history and Kerns was named Sun Belt COY
Dustin Kerns Coaching Tree
- coming soon