Over the last five years, Drake basketball has become one of the premier programs in college hoops. The Bulldogs have reached the NCAA Tournament in four of the previous five seasons and got a big upset win over No. 6 seed Missouri in the Round of 64 this year.
Of course, when you have that much success at a smaller program, that means that some of tour coaches are going to get opportunities to move up to the Power Five. After a tournament appearance in 2024, Darian DeVries made the jump to West Virginia, and Drake replaced him with Division II legend Ben McCollum. Now, after a 31-win season, McCollum is off to Iowa.
On Friday, Drake found McCollum's replacement. Former South Dakota State head coach Eric Henderson is headed to Des Moines to be the new man in charge of the Bulldogs program, according to Jeff Goodman of Field of 68.
“BREAKING: Drake is expected to hire South Dakota State head coach Eric Henderson, sources told The Field of 68,” Goodman wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
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Henderson doesn't have a ton of experience at the Division I level, but that shouldn't scare Drake fans away from appreciating this hire. South Dakota State has consistently been at the top of the Summit League over the last six seasons.
The Jackrabbits won at least a share of the Summit League regular season title four times in those six seasons, and they won the Summit League Conference Tournament in 2022 and 2024. Drake will be hoping that Henderson can keep it at the top of the Missouri Valley Conference and get it back to many more NCAA Tournaments in the future.
Henderson will have plenty of prestige to build on as he starts his new job. Drake has a record of 137-35 over the last five seasons, so it's well-known now that this is one of the top programs in the conference. While that will come with a lot of pressure for the two-time Summit League Coach of the Year, he has the credentials to keep this run going.
