Hugh Durham

Hugh Durham (born October 26, 1937)

Teams coached: Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Bulldogs, Jacksonville Dolphins
Florida State record: 230-95 (.708)
Georgia record: 297-215 (.580) **
Jacksonville record: 106-119 (.471)
Overall record: 633-429 (.596) **

Career Accomplishments:

Awards:

  • SEC Coach of the Year:  3  (1985, 1987, 1990)
  • Metro Coach of the Year:  1  (1978)
  • National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (inducted 2016)

Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):

1997-2005 Jacksonville
1978-1995 Georgia
1966-1978 Florida State
1959-1966 Florida State (asst)

Hugh Durham Facts

  • Hugh Nelson Durham
  • Born October 26, 1937
  • Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
  • Alma Mater: Florida State University (BA, 1959 & MBA, 1961)
  • Starred at Eastern HS in Louisville, earning all-state honors in both football and basketball
  • Played basketball at Florida State for four years under head coach J.K. “Bud” Kennedy
  • Started his coaching career after graduation as an assistant at Florida State, staying on Kennedy’s staff for seven seasons before replacing him as the head coach in 1966
    • Won 230 games in 12 seasons at his alma mater, leading the Seminoles to an NCAA Tournament Runner-up finish in 1972 and three NCAA Tournament appearances overall
  • Became the head coach at Georgia in 1978, leading the Bulldogs for the next 17 seasons
    • Won 297 games and went to seven NITs and four NCAA Tournaments, including the program’s first ever (and still only) trip to the NCAA Final Four in 1983
  • Retired as the UGA head coach in 1995, but came out of retirement two years later to become the head coach at Jacksonville
    • Coached the Dolphins for eight seasons, winning 18 games twice but ultimately finishing his tenure below .500 overall
    • Also served as the University’s Athletic Director from 2000 through 2004
    • Retired in 2005 as the winningest head coach in program history (106 wins)
  • Is a member of the FSU Hall of Fame (1980), Florida Sports Hall of Fame (1999), Georgia Sports Hall of Fame (2009), Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame (2012) and now the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (2016)
  • Is the namesake for the Hugh Durham Award, given annually since 2005 by CollegeInsider.com to the most outstanding mid-major head coach in NCAA Division I

Hugh Durham Coaching Tree

 

** Listed accomplishments for this coach do not include wins or appearances later vacated by the NCAA