The college basketball offseason is here, and we decided to have some fun over the next few months, ranking ALL 364 teams in D1. Number 267 is Tennessee Tech basketball.
Before you say we’re crazy – or that all of this is up for debate, let’s go over the very intricate process of how we came to this conclusion. We took a very statistical approach – with the help of Chat GPT – taking into consideration everything from March Madness wins and finishes, to AP Poll appearances, to conference players of the year. And then, a good friend of ours, Scott Blanchard, took our approach to the MAX.
Click here to visit the FIRST article, which explains how the formula works!
Here’s the breakdown of Tennessee Tech basketball!
NCAA Tournament Success
- Championships: 0
- Finals appearances: 0
- Final Fours: 0
- Elite Eights: 0
- Sweet 16s: 0
- NCAA wins: 0
- Bids: 2
Consistency Over Time
- Wins per season: 13.0
- Bids per season: 0.03
- AP Polls: 0
Player Quality & Talent
- All-Americans: 0
- NBA players drafted & played: 3
- Conference Players of the Year: 2
Conference & Other Success
- Conference regular season titles: 7
- Conference tournament titles: 1
- NIT titles: 0
- Other tournament titles: 0
Overall scoop on Tennessee Tech basketball
We move on to a Tennessee Tech basketball program in the 267th spot all-time!
The Golden Eagles have 79 seasons at the highest level of college hoops (according to basketball reference), with a pair of NCAA Tournament berths.
Both tourneys came wayyyyy back, with John Oldham leading them there in 1958 and 1963. Oldham’s success with Tennessee Tech led him to the Western Kentucky job, where he would later lead the Hilltoppers to the 1971 Final Four. So WKU fans, you’ve got to thank TTech fans, at least a little bit!
It’s surprising the Golden Eagles haven’t made it back to March Madness since. In 2002, they won the OVC, losing just one game in conference and heading into the OVC Tournament with a 22-5 record. However, they fell to Murray State in the finals by one point, instead playing in the NIT, where they took down Georgia State, Dayton, and Yale, but lost to the eventual champion, Memphis, in the quarterfinals.
Since that season, Tennessee Tech has had two more 20-win campaigns and nine seasons finishing with a winning record, but just haven’t been able to get over the hump.
Overall, Tennessee Tech has always been a solid mid-major. In the 79 seasons we are counting, they’ve finished with a winning record 35 times, which isn’t a bad percentage to have. They’re just hoping more NCAA Tournaments show up soon!