Consider what it takes to win 2,000 games as a high school coach. If a man or woman coached for 50 years, he or she would have to average 40 wins per year in order to reach that total. Even leading two different teams, it would take an average of 20 wins per team for 50 years. It's not an easy feat, yet as many as 18 coaches have won over 2,000 games in their career and they highlight MaxPreps' list of coaches with the most all-time victories.
If 2,000 wins seems like a difficult milestone, consider 4,000. Or at least 3,912. That's the total Joe Gilbert reached in his 66-year coaching career. Gilbert was still coaching girls softball at Barnsdall (Okla.) at the age of 88 before he passed away in July. He averaged nearly 60 wins a year while coaching six different sports in his career.
Gilbert is the clear leader on our list of all-time coaching victories, but there are a number of other impressive coaches on the list. Seventeen have 2,000 all-time wins while an 18th, Billy Bob Evans of Leon (Jewett, Texas), likely has over 2,000, but his totals in four other sports he coached are unavailable.
Missing records was an issue when compiling the list. Most coaches won well over 1,000 games in one sport, but also coached other sports for a few years, here and there, over their long careers. The records for those sports are often left out of the media coverage when recognizing a coach's career wins total. Such was the case for Evans, who could have as many as 3,000 all-time wins. Every effort was made to locate missing wins totals. When those efforts proved futile, they were mentioned in the list below.
Certain states lend themselves to a high volume of coaching wins. Iowa has 13 coaches on the list for several reasons. One, competitive girls sports in the state, especially softball, began nearly two decades prior to the passage of Title IX in the early 1970s. Two, softball and baseball play in the summer, offering the opportunity for more games. Iowa also had a fall season for both sports for many years.
Michigan and Alabama have a high number of volleyball and softball coaches on the list because both states have allowed for well over 50-60 contests per year for each sport. Bedford (Temperance), which is coached by Jodi Manore (No. 12 on the list), once won 89 volleyball matches in a season. Baker (Mobile, Ala.), which is coached by Toni Scarbrough (No. 35), won 69 or more games for four straight seasons in softball with a high of 79. Michigan and Alabama account for 10 coaches on the list.
Then there is Oklahoma, which has a fall and spring baseball season for the smaller baseball programs in the state. As a result, three coaches from the state have over 2,000 wins in the sport and six total Oklahoma baseball coaches are on the list.
Many are still coaching. Fifteen are coaching this year, including all-time volleyball wins leader Manore, and all-time baseball wins leader Eddie Collins of Latta (Okla.).
Sources for the list include the NFHS record book, Oklahoma-based Iwasatthegame.com by Chris Wilfong, Iowa Girls Coaches Association website, State association websites for Michigan and Alabama, the Cal-Hi Sports Record Book and Almanac by Mark Tennis and Nelson Tennis and research via newspapers.com.
Lori Blade has nearly 1,500 coaching victories with the Edwardsville girls basketball and softball teams.
File photo by Jimmy Simmons
1. Joe Gilbert — 3,912Schools/Years: Barnsdall (Okla.), 1954-2020
Sports/Wins: Fastpitch softball, 1,140; girls basketball, 922; baseball, 801; boys basketball, 649; slowpitch softball, 395; football, 5.
Note: Coached for 66 years and is the only coach with 800 or more wins in three different sports. Inducted into the National Federation of High Schools Hall of Fame in June and passed away at the age of 88 in July.
2. Larry Niemeyer — 2,960Schools/Years: Jefferson (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), 1961-2013
Sports/Wins: softball, 2,089; girls basketball, 871
Note: Niemeyer is one of two coaches with more than 2,000 wins in one sport. His 2,960 wins is the most for any coach when counting two sports. He also coached 18 seasons at Adel.
3. Jack Curran — 2,680Schools/Years: Archbishop Molloy (Queens, N.Y.), 1958-2013
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,708; boys basketball, 972
Note: Coached 55 seasons and was on the sidelines up until he died in 2013. Listed by the NFHS with only 1,154 wins, however New York City teams play a number of games each season that don't count on the official record, thus boosting Curran's actual baseball total to 1,708. Coached three-time Parade All-American Kenny Anderson in basketball.
4. Jeff Holman — 2,315Schools/Years: Haddonfield (N.J.), 1976-present
Sports/Wins: Girls tennis, 1,169; boys tennis, 1,146
Note: Holman is the nation's all-time leader in girls tennis wins and is tied with Elliott Lovi for the most boys wins. One of two coaches with more than 1,000 victories in two sports.
5. Frank Huston — 2,251Schools/Years: Ottumwa (Iowa), 1967-2019
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,853; girls basketball, 398
Note: Also coached briefly at the beginning of his career at Pekin and Gladbrook. Ranks second only to Niemeyer for the national lead in softball.
6. Rex Berryman — 2,163Schools/Years: Mooreville (Miss.), 1973-2010
Sports/Wins: Baseball 1,067; boys basketball, 639; softball, 457
Note: The all-time wins leader in Mississippi and the No. 2 wins leader in the state in baseball behind Jerry Boatner.
7. Gene Schultz — 2,152 Schools/Years: Kee (Lansing, Iowa), 1970-2014
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,754; boys basketball, 398
Note: Recognized by the NFHS as the all-time baseball coaching wins leader with 1,578 wins. Schultz won 224 games in fall baseball, which does not count toward his NFHS record (but does for this list).
8. Eddie Collins — 2,122Schools/Years: Latta (Ada, Okla.), 1977-present
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 2,122
Note: Collins passed Murl Bowen to become the nation's all-time baseball wins leader with fall and spring baseball combined. He also coached a season at Jones and three years at Rattan early in his career.
9. Murl Bowen — 2,115Schools/Years: Asher (Okla.), 1959-99
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 2,115
Note: Bowen won over 43 state championships in baseball when combining the fall and spring seasons. He had 1,063 wins during the spring and 1,052 in the fall.
10. Morgan Gilbert — 2,107Schools/Years: Tuckerman (Ark.), 1966-2013
Sports/Wins: Boys basketball, 1,077; baseball, 1,030
Note: Joins Jeff Holman as the only two coaches in history with over 1,000 wins in two different sports. Coached first three years at Tyronza and five years at Bay. He was at Tuckerman since 1974.
11. Julie Gordon — 2,100Schools/Years: Montgomery Academy (Ala.), 1979-present
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,454; girls basketball, softball, track and golf, approximately 650 combined wins.
Note: Gordon ranks as the third all-time winningest volleyball coach in the state. While her official records in girls basketball, softball, track and golf are unavailable, Gordon estimates she had about 650 wins in those sports combined.
12. Jodi Manore — 2,099Schools/Years: Bedford (Temperance, Mich.), 1980-83, 1990-present
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 2,099
Note: No coach has won more games in one sport than Manore, who edges Niemeyer in that department by 10 wins.
13. Billy Bowen — 2,098Schools/Years: Silo (Okla.), 1986-present
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 2,098
Note: This spring, Bowen will likely surpass uncle Murl Bowen for second place in national baseball coaching wins and could close in on Collins, who is only 24 wins ahead.
14. Joe Newton — 2,050Schools/Years: York (Elmhurst, Ill.), 1956-2016
Sports/Wins: Cross country/track and field, 2,050
Note:
When Newton died in 2016, he was listed with "more than 2,050
dual meet wins" in cross country and track and field with no exact total
mentioned. The Illinois High School Association lists Newton with only
349 dual meet wins in cross country, which averages out to less than
eight per year. That total seems out of sync with a program that won 28
state championships in boys cross country alone. He also coached at
Waterman prior to York.
15. Trey Booth — 2,028Schools/Years: Red Oak (Okla.), 1991-present
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,478; boys basketball, 540, girls basketball unavailable.
Note:
Booth began his career at Buffalo Valley, where he coached boys and
girls basketball and baseball. Moved to his alma mater Red Oak in
2004-05. Stepped down from girls basketball coaching duties in 2005-06
and boys basketball in 2018. Booth likely has about 250 more wins if
girls basketball is included.
16. Catherine Neely — 2,020Schools/Years: East Ridge (Chattanooga, Tenn.), 1964-2013
Sports/Wins: Girls volleyball, 1,395; girls basketball, 625
Note: The all-time leader in total wins in Tennessee and ranks second to Barbara Campbell of Brentwood in volleyball wins with 1,395.
17. John Hutchcraft — 2,013Schools/Years: Guy-Perkins (Guy, Ark.), 1975-2018
Sports/Wins: boys/girls basketball, 2,013; softball, unavailable
Note: Hutchcraft is not officially recognized by the Arkansas Activities Association record book, but he was listed with 2,013 combined wins for the boys and girls basketball when he retired in 2018. Coached first few seasons at Hazen and also coached the Guy-Perkins softball team, but wins for that team are unavailable.
18. Billy Bob Evans — 1,979Schools/Years: Leon (Jewett, Texas), 1954-2001
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,079; girls basketball, over 900; baseball, boys basketball and softball unavailable.
Note:
Evans began coaching at Leon in 1954 and coached multiple sports over
45 years. No win totals for baseball, boys basketball and softball have
been found, but it's likely that Evans has close to 2,500 career wins
across all sports.
19. Elliot Lovi — 1,969Schools/Years: Livingston (N.J.), 1973-present
Sports/Wins: Boys tennis, 1,146; girls tennis, 823
Note: Lovi is tied with Jeff Holman as the national leader in boys tennis wins and ranks second nationally, behind Holman, in career boys and girls tennis wins combined.
20. Bill Hennessy — 1,896Schools/Years: Roland-Story (Story City, Iowa), 1952-2000
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,374; girls basketball, 522.
Note: Also coached at Percival, Hennessy won state championships in four different decades. Known for his signature cup of coffee he carried with him in the dugout.
21. Ed Coughenour — 1,879Schools/Years: Kingsley-Pierson (Kingsley, Iowa), 1956-2006
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,522; girls basketball, 357
Note: Coughenour's daughter Ann is the state's all-time pitching wins leader with 239.
22. Bill Kingston — 1,876
Schools/Years: Moorestown (N.J.), 1974-2020
Sports/Wins: Boys tennis, 1,145; girls tennis, 731.
Note: New Jersey is home to some of the winningest tennis coaches in the nation. Kingston ranks No. 3 in the nation for boys tennis wins and is just one win behind fellow New Jersey coaches Elliott Lovi and Jeff Holman, who each have 1,146 boys tennis wins.
23. Diane Laffey — 1,868Schools/Years: Regina (Warren, Mich.), 1962-present
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,212; girls basketball, 656
Note: Laffey is the active national leader in softball wins and is No. 1 all-time in Michigan.
24. Daryl Scales — 1,836Schools/Years: Lookeba-Sickles (Lookeba, Okla.), 1983-2014
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,836; basketball unavailable
Note:
Scales also coached boys basketball for nearly 30 years, but his
overall win totals are unavailable. A rough estimation would put Scales
at about 450 career wins in the sport.
25. Jack Magelssen — 1,832Schools/Years: Portage Northern (Portage, Mich.), 1977-2012
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,832
Note: Magelssen ranked No. 1 in the nation for volleyball wins for many years before passed by fellow Michigan coach Manore. He coached the last seven years of his career at Delton Kellogg.
26. Jerry Boatner — 1,812Schools/Years: West Lauderdale (Collinsville, Miss.), 1968-2018
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,202; softball, 610
Note: The all-time baseball wins leader in Mississippi.
27. Gary Page — 1,776Schools/Years: Urbandale (Iowa), 1967-2000
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,400; girls basketball, 376
Note: Page ranks No. 4 in Iowa in softball wins. His coaching career was cut short when he died of cancer following the 2000 season.
28. Barbara Campbell — 1,761Schools/Years: Brentwood (Tenn.), 1988-present
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,761
Note: The No. 3 all-time leader in volleyball wins, Campbell has one of the nation's best winning percentages at 85.4 percent.
29. Brent Bohlender — 1,701Schools/Years: Johansen (Modesto, Calif.), 1981-2019
Sports/Wins: Girls water polo, 707; boys water polo, 640; swim team, 354.
Note: Bohlender ranks No. 1 among water sports coaches. His totals do not include an update for the 2019-20 season.
30. Richard Duease — 1,699Schools/Years: Madison-Ridgeland Academy (Madison, Miss.), 1975-present
Sports/Wins: Boys basketball, 1,107; girls basketball, 592
Note: Duease took over the all-time combined coaching lead in boys and girls basketball last year. He also coached at Manchester Academy and Clarksdale Lee.
31. Norris Ashley — 1,697Schools/Years: Ingomar (New Albany, Miss.), 1971-2013
Sports/Wins: Boys basketball, 1,023; girls basketball, 674
Note: Ashley held the all-time lead in Mississippi in combined career wins in boys and girls basketball prior to the 2020 season.
32. Dick Rasmussen — 1,690Schools/Years: Ankeny (Iowa), 1964-1997
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,165; girls basketball, 525
Note: Rasmussen ranks No. 9 in the state of Iowa in career softball wins.
33. Les Hueser — 1,683Schools/Years: Hubbard-Radcliffe (Hubbard, Iowa), 1954-1995
Sports/Wins: Softball, 981; girls basketball, 702; boys basketball, baseball, unavailable
Note: Also coached boys basketball and baseball at Webb from 1954 to 1959. Records for those seasons unavailable.
34. Becky Dickinson — 1,670Schools/Years: McGill-Toolen (Mobile, Ala.), 1968-1999
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,273; girls basketball, 397; boys tennis, unavailable.
Note: Finished her career with the most all-time volleyball wins in Alabama.
35. Tony Scarbrough — 1,634Schools/Years: Baker (Mobile, Ala.), 1970-present
Sports/Wins: Fastpitch softball, 1,071; slowpitch softball, 563.
Note: Scarbrough's Baker teams hold the top four spots in the Alabama state record for most wins in a season. All but 10 of his career softball wins came at Baker.
36, Rick Dillinger — 1,580Schools/Years: North Polk (Alleman, Iowa), 1976-2018
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,174; girls basketball, 406
Note: Ranks No. 8 in the state for career softball wins.
37. C.E. Womack — 1,570Schools/Years: Hawley (Texas), 1947-1979
Sports/Wins: Boys basketball, 896; girls basketball, 674.
Note: Holds the state record in Texas for most combined wins in boys and girls basketball.
38. Jerry Newton — 1,569Schools/Years: Charles City (Iowa), 1967-1999
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,068; girls basketball, 501
Note: Of the 18 Iowa softball coaches with more than 1,000 career wins, Newton has the fewest losses with 190.
39. Cotton Havener — 1,556Schools/Years: Mulberry (Ark.), 1,945-87
Sports/Wins: Boys/girls basketball combined, 1,556
Note: Ranked No. 1 in the Arkansas state record book for combined boys and girls basketball wins, however Hutchcraft's total of 2,013 has not been recognized by the state.
40. Ann Schilling — 1,567Schools/Years: Bayside Academy (Daphne, Ala.), 1987-present
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,567
Note: Schilling moved into the No. 3 spot all-time for national volleyball wins after a 44-4 (and counting) fall season. She also ranks No. 1 in Alabama.
41. Betty Wrouble — 1,554Schools/Years: Clawson, 1979-82; Oakland Catholic, 1989-94;
Notre Dame Prep (Pontiac, Mich.), 1995-present
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,554
Note: Michigan volleyball teams play a high number of games each year, which would explain while Wrouble ranks No. 5 all-time nationally in wins, but only No. 3 in the state of Michigan.
42. Tom Kennelly — 1,505Schools/Years: Swan Valley (Saginaw, Mich.), 1980-present
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1,184; girls basketball, 321
Note: Kennelly ranks No. 3 in the state of Michigan in career softball wins.
43. Joe Lombard — 1,480Schools/Years: Canyon (Texas), 1978-2020
Sports/Wins: Girls basketball, 1,379; cross country, 101
Note: Lombard estimates he had 101 wins in cross country. His girls basketball total ranks No. 2 all-time behind Leta Andrews.
44. Tommy Barrett — 1,474Schools/Years: Caddo Gap, Forest Lake,
Lake Hamilton (Pearcy, Ark.), 1956-2003
Sports/Wins: Girls basketball/Boys basketball, 1,474
Note: Ranks No. 2 in Arkansas for combined wins in boys and girls basketball, but no breakdown of wins for each sport was available.
45. Lori Blade — 1,472Schools/Years: Edwardsville (Ill.), 1994-present
Sports/Wins: Girls basketball, 743; softball, 729
Note: Blades retired from girls basketball in the spring of 2020, but is still the softball coach at Edwardsville. One of three coaches with 700 or more wins in two girls sports.
46. Howard Dorman — 1,461Schools/Years: Woden-Crystal Lake-Titonka (Crystal Lake, Iowa), 1960-2008
Sports/Wins: Softball, 1019; Girls basketball, 442
Note: Coached for nearly 50 years and ranks No. 17 in wins in Iowa.
47. Glenda Wright — 1,458Schools/Years: Hazel Green (Ala.), 1970-2015
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,458; basketball unavailable
Note: Wright also coached basketball during the 1970s, but records are unavailable. She still ranks second in state history for career wins in volleyball.
48. Louise Crocco — 1,452Schools/Years: Cardinal Gibbons (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 1969-2007
Sports/Wins: Volleyball, 1,132; girls basketball, 142; softball, 178
Note: The all-time wins leader for volleyball in Florida, Crocco also coached girls basketball and softball in the 1970s.
49. Mike Vint — 1,443Schools/Years: Pella (Iowa), 1971-2009
Sports/Wins: Softball,
1,108; girls basketball, 335
Note: Ranks No. 11 in state history in career wins. Also coached at three other schools.
50. Dennis Olenjnicak — 1,417Schools/Years: Decorah-North Winneshiek (Decorah, Iowa), 1962-2018
Sports/Wins: Baseball, 1,417
Note: Ranked second behind Gene Schultz in the NFHS record book for spring baseball wins when he retired in 2018.
Note: Larry Rogers of Bellarmine likely belongs on the list somewhere. Cal-Hi Sports listed the longtime water polo and boys swimming coach with over 1,400 career wins in its 2008 Record Book and Almanac, but updated totals are unavailable.
