Fred Hoiberg Named Jim Phelan Coach of the Year

Nebraska’s Fred Hoiberg is the recipient of the 2023-24 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year award.  The award is presented annually to the top head coach in division I college basketball.  Hoiberg led the Cornhuskers to their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2014. Nebraska finished with 23 victories - the program’s most since 1991.  Nebraska was top-40 nationally in adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, holding opponents to a top-20 defensive field goal percentage. The Cornhuskers finished third in the Big 10, posting a winning record for only the third time since they joined the league for the 2011-12 season. Hoiberg is the second Husker men’s basketball coach to earn the honor, as Tim Miles was the 2014 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year.

The Jim Phelan Award is named in honor of a legendary bow-tied coach who spent his entire head coaching career at Mount Saint Mary’s University. Phelan graduated from La Salle University in 1951 and played one season in the NBA with the Philadelphia Warriors. After a brief professional career, Phelan went to Mount St. Mary’s as an assistant in 1953. One year later he began his historical career as a head coach. He led the Mountaineers to 16 Division II NCAA tournaments. Five times they advanced to the Final Four and he led them to the DII National Championship in 1962. When he retired in 2003, after coaching for 49 years, he had amassed 830 wins (overall record of 830-524) in all divisions. In those 49 years, 19 of his teams amassed 20 or more wins in a season. In 2008 he was inducted into National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. The recipient of the annual award is determined by a 10-member voting committee, which consists of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members of collegeinsider.com. 

Here is Fred finding out about the award from his family