BOSTON, MA --For the second consecutive year, Head Basketball Coach Roman Banks is in the running for an award that bears the name of one of Southern's legendary former coach.
CollegeInsider.com announced the fifteen finalists for the 2014 Ben Jobe award on Monday.
"Any of the finalists would be make a great recipient of the Ben Jobe Award," said CollegeInsider.com's Angela Lento. "This award recognizes class and coaching excellence, which all of the finalists embody."
In only his third season as a Division I head coach, Banks has led Southern from the depths of NCAA APR futility to the summit of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, winning the league's tournament title in 2013 and the regular season crown this season.
Banks, who has been named as Coach of the Year by various news outlets and sports association, earned the SWAC's top honor for the second consecutive season as well as CollegeInsider.com's SWAC Coach of the Year honor.
The finalists include Tommy Amaker (Harvard), Roman Banks (Southern), Johnny Dawkins (Stanford), Ron Hunter (Georgia State), James Jones (Yale), Mike Jones (Radford), Joe Jones (Boston University), Danny Manning (Tulsa), Cuonzo Martin (Tennessee), Rob Murphy (Eastern Michigan), LeVelle Moton (North Carolina Central), Kevin Ollie (Connecticut), Monte Ross (Delaware), Gary Waters (Cleveland State), Willis Wilson (Texas A&M Corpus Christi).
The Ben Jobe Award is presented annually to the top minority coach in division I men's basketball. Coach Jobe is an icon in the history of basketball at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He is best known as the head coach of the Southern University, a position he held for 12 seasons. He has also head coach at Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Talladega, Tuskegee and South Carolina State.
His record at Southern was 209-141 and included four NCAA Tournament appearances. He also coached the Jaguars to one NIT appearance, five SIAC championships, 11 SWAC titles and two NAIA Tournament Championships. Perhaps his most memorable moment as a coach was Southern's 93-78 win over Georgia Tech in the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament. It stands as one of the great upsets in the history of the event.
The winner of the 2014 Jobe award will be announced at the CollegeInsider.com Awards Banquet on April 4 in Dallas, site of the Division I Men's Basketball Championship.
2014 BEN JOBE AWARD FINALISTS
Tommy Amaker, Harvard
Roman Banks, Southern University
Johnny Dawkins, Stanford
Ron Hunter, Georgia State
James Jones, Yale
Joe Jones, Boston University
Mike James, Radford
Danny Manning, Tulsa
Cuonzo Martin, Tennessee
Rob Murphy, Eastern Michigan
LeVelle Moton, North Carolina Central
Kevin Ollie, Connecticut
Monte Ross, Delaware
Gary Waters, Cleveland State
Willis Wilson, Texas A&M Corpus Christi
