Sharp dressed men of March

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The days of suits being the standard on the sidelines for college basketball head coaches are long gone. A large majority of coaches have resorted to a simple polo or quarter-zip look on gameday, but some admirable program leaders maintain the tradition of formality. When the 68-team field was released on Sunday, the overwhelming majority of head coaches set to lead their programs in the Big Dance no longer wear suits, making it as critical as ever to recognize those who do.

The following spreadsheet denotes each school in the field, their head coach and what he was wearing in their most recent conference tournament game, whether that be a suit, some semblance of a suit or no suit at all. It is possible some of the coaches will wear something different for the NCAA Tournament than they did in their conference tournament, but for simplicity, the sheet is based on each team’s most recent outing. Bonus points go to programs which have the entire staff suited up for games, but this data is based solely on head coaches.

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With a low concentration of suit-wearers set to coach in the tournament, it would be a shame to not highlight the mid-major coaches who go old-school and suit up as well as a few others with unique attire. Broken up into three tiers, here are the five mid-major coaches to keep an eye on for fashion reasons in the first round.

Tier 1: Full suit (coat and tie)​

Rod Strickland – No. 16 Long Island​

Opponent and tipoff time: No. 1 Arizona, Friday, March 20, 1:35 p.m. ET, on TNT

The champions of the NEC are not going to play in the First Four this year, unlike many years past. Long Island received some national love during the NEC Tournament thanks to its spirit section “The Reef” and its viral “Fins Up” cheer. Sharks fans making the trip to San Diego will look to give their team some juice in hopes of a monumental upset. More importantly, Long Island will have one key advantage over Arizona and that is a better-dressed head coach. Strickland isn’t overly flashy with his fashion game, but the Sharks’ head man cleans up nicely and sported a full suit through the NEC Tournament run.

He is faced with preparing to travel cross-country to play a juggernaut Arizona team–which is full of NBA talent–playing near home. While 16 seeds are never expected to even make a game out of a first-round matchup, Strickland’s style and seeing The Reef take “Fins Up” on the road provides at least a little reason to check in on this game.

Flynn Clayman – No. 12 High Point​

Opponent and tipoff time: No. 5 Wisconsin, Thursday, March 19, 1:50 p.m. ET, on TBS

For anyone who enjoys head coaches in suits, this is the game of the first round. Based on each team’s most recent game, this is the only game in the first round where both coaches will be wearing suits. Clayman, who took over for Alan Huss this season, led High Point back to the Tournament, with the team averaging better than 90 points per game. Its first round opponent, Wisconsin, is led by Greg Gard, who also keeps it traditional with a full suit. This game could be the perfect blend of an old-school look on the sidelines with a modern product on the court with coaches wearing suits but pace and 3-point shooting aplenty.

In the true sicko spirit, it seemed necessary to dig a little deeper out of respect for the one matchup between coaches who suit up. After further review of each team’s most recent game, both coaches also had their assistants dressed up. While it could change for Thursday’s game, Gard’s assistants wore coats, but no ties, whereas the entire High Point staff had coats and ties for their Big South Tournament championship win over Winthrop.

Gard has rocked a red coat, three-piece suits and overall might get a little flashier than Clayman at times, but it’s hard to argue against a head coach and all of his assistants with both coats and ties, even if they keep it simple color-wise.

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Tier 2: Some semblance of a suit (either a coat with no tie or tie with no coat)​

Grant Leonard – No. 15 Queens​

Opponent and tipoff time: No. 2 Purdue, Friday, March 20, 7:35 p.m. ET, on truTV

Leonard has garnered plenty of national attention this season, partially thanks to his style. On Dec. 16, Queens played at Arkansas, and Leonard sported an ugly Christmas sweater with “Gangsta Wrapper” plastered across the front. Recently, he called out an SEC school for sending an assistant to sit courtside at the ASUN Tournament and later sent out a comical tweet under a video of Bruce Pearl losing his mind courtside at the SEC Tournament.

He was mad at me, I said something about assistants not being focused on the current game https://t.co/Zxgz1xwdHy

— Grant Leonard (@QUCoachGrant) March 13, 2026

In Queens’ thrilling overtime win over Central Arkansas to clinch the program’s first tournament berth – the first from any school starting with the letter Q – Leonard sported a beautiful light blue coat. While there was no tie, a color that pops for the jacket gave the Royals’ head coach a flashy, yet classy look on the sideline in the biggest win in program history.

Leonard will have his hands full with Matt Painter and Purdue, which is fresh off a Big Ten Tournament title, but if he chooses to rock a coat again, he will have an advantage over the quarter-zip-wearing Painter in at least one element–fashion.

Tier 3: Not a suit-wearer, but deserves recognition​

Eran Ganot – No. 13 Hawaii​

Opponent and tipoff time: No. 4 Arkansas, Thursday, March 19, 4:25 p.m., on TBS

No, he doesn’t wear a suit, but with the short list of coaches who do, Ganot deserves a shoutout for how his bench looks on gameday. Barring an unforeseen change, when Hawaii takes on Arkansas on Thursday, Ganot and his assistants will all be rocking floral print, Hawaiian shirts. It may not be a suit, but Ganot and his staff are embracing cultural heritage to bring a more eye-popping look to the sidelines for games. Sure it’s not as formal as a suit or shirt and tie look, but it’s a look that is meaningful to the program, its fans and its state and absolutely beats the basic quarter-zip or polo in terms of appearance.

His coaching matchup, John Calipari, mixes in a variety of beautiful coats, so should he continue the trend, Thursday’s second tilt in Portland may not be a two-suit sideline like the Wisconsin-High Point matchup that precedes it, but it will certainly be a unique look for fans.

John Groce – No. 12 Akron​

Opponent and tipoff time: No. 5 Texas Tech, Friday, March 20, 12:40 p.m. ET, on truTV

Making his third-consecutive tournament appearance, and fourth in the last five years, John Groce will lead the Zips into battle with a unique look. Like Ganot, Groce doesn’t suit up, but has created a look of his own to introduce some variety on the sidelines.

Instead of the basic polo or quarter-zip look adopted by most coaches, Groce has become recognizable for his vest over a long-sleeve shirt look as his program has become a powerhouse in the MAC. Even in a year where Miami (OH) went 31-0 and posed a great threat to keep Akron out of the tournament, the Zips got it done with their head man in a vest. He’ll be matched up with Grant McCasland in round one and while neither coach will be all that dressed up, Groce will add some flair to the sideline.

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