WRITTEN BY sportscollectorsdaily, on August 5, 2017
Want a unique niche? Collect autographs from the winningest college basketball coaches of all time. This article was written in collaboration with eBay.
The NCAA’s Top Bench Bosses
It’s a never-ending parade of recruiting, alumni functions, media sessions, clinics, scouting, and, oh yeah, coaching. For college basketball coaches, the 40 minutes they’re actually on the bench is only part of the job.
To succeed for even a little while is hard. To stick around long enough to win hundreds of games over many seasons is why some of the winningest coaches earn the big bucks. As of this moment, two coaches have over 1,000 career wins, and they’re still at it. In fact, four other active coaches (Roy Williams, Rick Pitino, Bob Huggins, and John Calipari) are moving up the list to rank among the winningest of all-time. In sports, it’s rare to see any “all-time leader” list that includes so many living and active members.
Why Collect Autographs of College Coaches
While the NCAA has cracked down on fans’ access to players, coaches are still fair game for autograph collectors. While the big names sometimes have cut back on how much and how often they sign because of ongoing demand, most are relatively accessible. Consider that as of this writing, four of the top five winningest coaches are still alive (Mike Krzyzewski, Jim Boeheim, Bob Knight, and Jim Calhoun) and others who’ve passed on have plenty of autographs
available in the marketplace.
Another factor is cost. While superstar players, active and retired, can sometimes be expensive to collect, the market for coaches’ autographs is generally not as strong.
Types of Items to Collect
Photographs are probably the most common type of items associated with collecting autographs of great college coaches. Easy to ship and easy to store or display, photos are also among the cheapest to collect when paying for an autograph. They’re the least expensive item to get of coaches like Mike Krzyzewski and Bob Knight who have autograph contracts to sign for Steiner Sports.
Also popular are coach-signed basketballs. You can collect single-signed balls or try to gather the signatures of some of the top living
coaches on a single ball.
Another option is to collect autographs on Final Four programs. Most of those on the list of top winners took their team to at least a few games on college basketball’s last weekend.
Many of the top coaches have also written books on coaching or being successful in life and are happy to sign them. Those books are often inexpensive when purchased online.
Beyond the Wins List
There have been a lot of great coaches who may not inhabit the top ten list. Years ago, colleges didn’t play as many games as they do now and some just didn’t coach as long. Wooden, for all of his championships, ranks outside the top 25. Yet what collector wouldn’t want a Wooden autograph in his collection? There are great names from the past who are even more of a challenge to locate including Adolph Rupp, Phog Allen, and E.A. Diddle.