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Notre Dame Basketball: Mike Brey will be second-longest tenured HC in ACC

By Brad Weiss

Feb 17, 2020; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey signals to an official in the second half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 17, 2020; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey signals to an official in the second half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mike Brey has been at the helm of the Notre Dame Basketball program since 2000 and will become the second-longest tenured HC in the ACC.

After another disappointing season for the Notre Dame Basketball program in 2020-21, a year where they had to navigate COVID, some felt Mike Brey would be on his way out. The Irish have had a fairly long drought in terms of getting to the NCAA Tournament, and they finished their season with a quick exit in the ACC Tournament.

Brey was not fired, and after it was announced, Mike Krzyzewski will be retiring after next season, and with Roy Williams’s exit from UNC after this past season, he will become the second-longest tenured head coach in the ACC after this year. The only coach with more years in at their current ACC school is Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, who stated this week that he has no plans on retiring anytime soon, despite the fact he is 77.

The ACC will see two new faces in Herbert Davis this upcoming season, who replaces Williams at UNC, and Earl Grant, taking over at Boston College. Also, Steve Forbes enters only his second season at the helm of Wake Forest, so overall, there is a good blend of veteran head coaches, and guys still really getting their feet wet in ACC play.

Notre Dame Basketball trending upwards in 2021-22

This season, the Irish should be one of the better teams in the ACC, as they have a solid group coming back that is also adding some good talent. They have two true freshmen coming in who played their high school ball in South Bend, a transfer from Yale with the size, and scoring ability to be a real menace in the ACC.

Prentiss Hubb is one of the better point guards in the conference, and Nate Laszewski is a guy who can fill it up at any time. Overall, Brey has a team that should challenge for a spot in the NCAA Tournament this upcoming season, because if they do not make it, he could be on his way out.

The bottom line is, the Irish have a ton of talent returning this upcoming season, boasting a veteran-laded lineup that has been through the fire together. For Brey, he has over 20 years at the helm of the program, and the time has come for him to get the Men’s team back to the NCAA Tournament.