Is John Wooden the greatest collegiate coach of all-time?

No. John Wooden created the “Pyramid of Success”, and as we all know, pyramids were build by slaves. Therefore he’s problematic and is cancelled.

He must be replaced by Avery Johnson.

Geno Auriemma has a better resume. 20 less losses, 400 more wins, 1 more title.

Rod Dedeaux won 11 College World Series including 6 CWS over a 7 year span.

Sam Gilbert is the best booster of all time. Lots of shady stuff happened at UCLA under Wooden.

the original bagman started with him

Pat Summit

People just focus on Kareem and Walton and say, of course Wooden won he had those big men.

But he won his first two titles in that same decade with a small lineup that played full-court pressure (when nobody was doing that) and ran a fast break offense.

UCLA hadn't won shite before Wooden came along. There wasn't a Kansas heritage or North Carolina or Kentucky heritage.

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Is John Wooden the greatest collegiate coach of all-time?

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Are we talking all college sports? If just basketball, he def has a case and that would apply to all sports as well, here's the context for the era in which Wooden thrived:

-no three-point line
-players stayed all 4 years
-no shot clock
-no dunking, thanks to one of Wooden's players Lew Alcindor
-more simple offensive/defensive college schemes (complex basketball coaching didn't emerge until the early 80s when the pros started enacting all the illegal defense rules to open up the paint since almost no one took 3s then)
-easier to get away with NCAA violations

critical factors to Wooden's success (outside of his great coaching and leadership):

-West Coast-based team ie black basketball players played there sooner than other schools
-Sam Gilbert
-weak conference
-always had the most talented players

the argument for Wooden (simplified):

-his W-L record and titles
-winning streaks
-one of the most revered coaches across multiple sports
-class personified
-made all that talent play as a unit and it worked
-1975, not the most talented UCLA title team, showed he could take his'un and beat your'un and vice versa for all the doubters who argued he was only good if leading great talent

I personally think Knight's among the all-time greatest for his ability as a game strategist and ability to lead collections of comparatively (to the other big boys) inferior talent to great success wherever he's coached, he coaches past the talent and that's the true mark of an all-time great coach. He isn't as revered as Wooden because of his infamous temper and Army disciplinarian nature but dude coached them up good.

Larry Kehres
332-24-3 (.929 winning percentage)
11 national titles
ZERO scholarships

Eddie Robinson