Jimmy Collins (Former Head Coach)

Jimmy Collins

Teams coached: UIC Flames
UIC record: 218-208 (.512)
Overall record: 218-208 (.512)

James Earl Collins
Born November 24, 1946
Died December 13, 2020
Hometown: Syracuse, New York
Alma Mater: New Mexico State University (BA, 1970)
After graduating from Corcoran HS (NY), Collins played for head coach Lou Henson at New Mexico State
- Served as the Aggies’ team captain as a senior and led the team to the 1970 NCAA Final Four
- Drafted 11th overall in the 1970 NBA Draft and played two seasons for the Chicago Bulls (coached by Dick Motta)
Returned to NMSU in 1973 to work as a graduate assistant on Henson‘s staff
Left the sport for a while, moving back to Chicago and working as a probation officer for Cook County (IL)
- Became a volunteer head coach at St. Thomas Elementary School in Chicago for three years
Became an assistant coach at Illinois in 1983, working again for Henson, who had been at the school since 1975
- Was on the Illini staff for 13 seasons, where he was part of 10 NCAA Tournaments and the 1989 Final Four run
Hired to be the head coach at UIC (Illinois-Chicago) in 1996, leading the Flames for the next fourteen years
- Went 218-208 during his tenure, reaching three NCAA Tournaments and one NIT
- Won the MCC regular season championship in 1998 and claimed two MCC Tournament titles
Collins passed away in December 2020 at the age of 74; survived by his wife, Hettie, and four children, Erica, Kenny, Semaj and Brandi
Inducted into the New Mexico State Athletics HOF (c/o 1975) and the UIC Athletics HOF (c/o 2019)