Seven of the late Lute Olson’s former players at Arizona are presently coaching their own programs.
The players who played for the Hall of Fame coach who are now head coaches:
- Matt Brase, Olson’s grandson, who coaches the Haiti National Team
- Steve Kerr, Golden State Warriors
- Craig McMillan, Santa Rosa (Calif.) Junior College
- Josh Pastner, Georgia Tech
- Jason Stewart, Encinitas (Calif.) San Dieguito High School
- Damon Stoudamire, Pacific
- Luke Walton, Sacramento Kings
Legendary Arizona softball coach Mike Candrea has the most former players who are head coaches with 10.
The late Dick Tomey and Jerry Kindall each coached five players who are now head coaches or managers (including Terry Francona of the Cleveland Indians).
Here is the list:
FORMER ARIZONA ATHLETES WHO ARE HEAD COACHES
List of head coaches of various sports and different levels who competed at Arizona. *-Denotes did not finish career at Arizona. Compiled by AllSportsTucson.com.| Name | UA | Team | Sport | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candace Abrams | 2000-04 | Clarendon (Texas) JC | Softball | 2020 |
| Amy Baray-Rocha | 1999 | Salpointe Catholic HS | Softball | 2015 |
| Adia Barnes | 1995-99 | Arizona | Women's hoops | 2016 |
| Marcus Bell | 1996-99 | Eagar Round Valley HS | Football | 2011 |
| Heidi Bomberger-Bruschi | 1993-97 | Attleboro (MA) Feehan HS | Volleyball | 2020 |
| Matt Brase | 2003-05 | Haiti National Team | Men's hoops | 2017 |
| Robert Bonillas | 1995-98 | Desert View HS | Football | 2012 |
| Tod Brown | 1990-94 | New Mexico | Baseball | 2022 |
| Casey Candaele | 1980-82 | Toronto Blue Jays Triple-A | Baseball | 2021 |
| Jackie Coburn | 2002-05 | Scottsdale Horizon HS | Softball | 2013 |
| Troy Cooke | 1982-84 | Show Low HS | Boys hoops | 2020 |
| Clark Crist | 1977-80 | Pulaski (VA) River Turtles | Baseball | 2021 |
| Debby Day | 1989-91 | Cal-Lutheran | Softball | 2002 |
| Jay Dobyns | 1982-84 | Tanque Verde HS | Football | 2020 |
| Britt Echols* | 2001 | Sahuaro HS | Baseball | 2020 |
| Byron Evans | 1983-86 | South Mountain HS | Football | 2020 |
| Terry Francona | 1977-80 | Cleveland Indians | MLB | 2013 |
| Tanya Farhat-Villarreal | 1994-97 | West Bend (WI) Slinger HS | Softball | 2015 |
| Brenda Frese | 1989-93 | Maryland | Women's hoops | 2002 |
| Kristie Fox | 2004-07 | UNLV | Softball | 2017 |
| Margo Geer | 2011-14 | Alabama | Swimming/Diving | 2020 |
| Jason Hisey | 1988-91 | Canyon del Oro HS | Baseball | 2019 |
| Jack Howell | 1983 | Anaheim Angels Single-A | Baseball | 2021 |
| Krista Humphreys | 1993-96 | Corona (CA) Centennial HS | Softball | 2015 |
| Stacey Iveson | 1986-89 | Israel National Team | Softball | 2019 |
| Mark Keel | 1979-82 | Silverdale (WA) Central Kitsap HS | Football | 2000 |
| Steve Kerr | 1983-88 | Golden State Warriors | NBA | 2014 |
| Michael Klyce | 2004-08 | Los Angeles Locke HS | Football | 2017 |
| David Landrith | 1980-83 | Pusch Ridge HS | Baseball | 2019 |
| Andy Litten | 1999-03 | Scottsdale Horizon HS | Football | 2021 |
| Hunter Long | 2013-15 | Douglas HS | Football | 2019 |
| Michael Lopez | 2009-12 | Big Spring (TX) Howard JC | Baseball | 2020 |
| Caitlin Lowe | 2004-07 | Arizona | Softball | 2022 |
| Paige Maggio | 2013-16 | Mountain View HS | Girls soccer | 2018 |
| Brandon Manumaleuna | 1997-00 | Lawndale (CA) Leuzinger HS | Football | 2020 |
| Jennifer Martinez | 2008-09 | Abraham Baldwin (GA) JC | Softball | 2017 |
| Scott McKee | 1999-02 | Sahuaro HS | Football | 2009 |
| Craig McMillan | 1984-88 | Santa Rosa (CA) JC | Men's hoops | 2000 |
| Richard Mercado | 2002-04 | Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei HS | Baseball | 2019 |
| Leighton Milton | 1992-93 | Hollywood (CA) HS | Football | 2020 |
| Edwin Mulitalo | 1995-98 | Southern Virginia | Football | 2018 |
| Ronnie Palmer | 2005-08 | Monterrey Peninsula (CA) JC | Football | 2020 |
| Josh Pastner | 1996-00 | Georgia Tech | Men's hoops | 2016 |
| Jose Portilla | 1996-97 | Heritage Academy | Football | 2017 |
| Jody Pruitt | 1990-93 | Peoria Sunrise Mountain HS | Softball | 2011 |
| Rebekah Quiroz | 2002 | Pima CC | Softball | 2019 |
| Danielle Steinberg | 2005-09 | Colorado | Women's tennis | 2018 |
| Gina Snyder | 2018-19 | Manatee (FL) Squeeze | Softball | 2020 |
| Jason Stewart | 1997-99 | Encinitas (CA) San Dieguito HS | Boys hoops | 2014 |
| Damon Stoudamire | 1992-95 | Pacific | Men's hoops | 2016 |
| Rafael Valenzuela | 2008-10 | Tampa Bay Rays Rookie League | Baseball | 2019 |
| Luke Walton | 1999-03 | Sacramento Kings | NBA | 2019 |
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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