Sunday’s Elite 8 matchup between the Michigan Wolverines and Tennessee Volunteers will feature a couple of decorated head coaches who have found major success in Division I college basketball.
Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, 71, has been at it for much longer than May, having started off in Division I as a head coach at George Mason in 1987-88 and is now closing in on four decades as a head coach in college basketball, having compiled an 861-434 record for his career with 30 NCAA Tournament appearances.
Michigan’s Dusty May, 49, got his break in 2018-19 when he took over the Florida Atlantic program and took the Falcons to a Final Four and two NCAA Tournament appearances before landing the Michigan job in 2024-25, having led the Wolverines to a 61-13 record in two seasons at the helm up to this point.
On Saturday ahead of the game between the two teams, Barnes was asked about Michigan and what May has been able to do with the Wolverines in a short period of time.
Barnes on Dusty May and Michigan
“He’s a terrific basketball coach,” Barnes said about May. “The times I’ve been with him, I really do love him as a human being. He knows what he’s doing, obviously. “Dusty did a great job [at FAU], and then he gets one of the great jobs in the country. He believes in what he believes in. You watch his teams play, and you understand what’s important to him. It’s a winning formula, and he stays with it. Like all of us have to, you have to adapt to the NIL. Great respect for him.”
Barnes added there are multiple aspects that impresses him about this Michigan team that the Volunteers need to prepare for ahead of the matchup…