By Mark Nagi
Back in 2015, Tennessee’s men’s basketball program was reeling. They had just fired Donnie Tyndall after one season due to potential NCAA rules violations he committed while at Southern Miss. The Vols would now be looking for their third coach in four years.
Then UT Director of Athletics Dave Hart said the vetting of Tyndall was good … which it obviously was not. Hart needed to hit a home run for Tyndall’s replacement, and he did with the hiring of Rick Barnes.
Hart, who made many mistakes during his six years as Tennessee’s AD, was extremely fortunate that a Hall of Fame-level coach was on the market. Barnes had been fired following his 17th season at Texas. He was the program’s winningest coach, with a 402-180 record, and led the program to the Final 4 in 2003. But after seven straight years without a Sweet 16 appearance, newly hired Texas AD Steve Patterson demanded that Barnes make changes to his coaching staff. Barnes refused and was dismissed.
Yes, Barnes and Patterson had a poor relationship. And that poor relationship was a lifeline for Hart.
In 2025, Barnes recalled his exit from Austin and looked back at it with gratitude. “I made the comment that the athletic director at the time, Steve Patterson, fired me. He didn’t really fire me. He just carried out what God wanted him to do because I truly believe that God brought me to Knoxville for a reason.”
Barnes is from Hickory, NC, and played at Lenoir-Rhyne. This part of the country is home to him. Coming back East was a terrific season for him and for Tennessee. In his first two years, the Vols only went a combined 31-35. But his third season (2018-2019) was the breakthrough. The Vols came out of nowhere to win the SEC regular season championship, and they’ve been in the mix for conference and national success pretty much every season going forward. In fact, they’ve finished no lower than 4th in the SEC after that season.
Now in his 11th year in Knoxville, Barnes has established himself as the best men’s basketball coach in the program’s history. Heading into last weekend, Barnes had a 256-120 record. That’s a winning percentage of 68%. The Vols have won the SEC regular season title twice and the SEC tournament once. Tennessee has also been to the Sweet 16 five times and twice earned a place in the Elite 8.
(Note: This article was written before Tennessee’s Sweet 16 game against Iowa State late Friday night.)
Better than legendary Ray Mears. Better than Bruce Pearl. Better than Don DeVoe.
Rick Barnes stands at the top of the heap.
To be completely honest, I thought that Barnes was lining up for one more payday when he took the Tennessee job, much like Jerry Green did after Kevin O’Neill left in 1997. But Barnes, now 71, has given the Vols the stability that they so desperately needed during a very rough time at UT. Barnes could choose to ride off into the sunset following this season. He might coach for another few years. He might never win another game at Tennessee.
No matter. His legacy is complete.
