Vining reaches 400
Adam Holland
Issue date: 2/25/05 Section: Campus News
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Rarely does an NCAA Division I-A coach spend his entire career at one institution. It is even less likely that he would win 400 games at his alma mater.
Louisiana-Monroe's head basketball coach Mike Vining has accomplished all of the above and will be honored by the ULM athletics department March 2 at 7:30 p.m., prior to the Indians' date with Lamar in Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
Vining reached the 400-win milestone when the Tribe defeated Nicholls State 72-67 in Monroe on Feb. 7. With that win, he joined an elite club that only 28 active college coaches have reached.
Vining, now in his 24th season at ULM, is ranked third nationally of all the coaches who are at their alma maters.
Jim Boehiem is in his 29th year at Syracuse with 687 wins, and Dave Bike of Sacred Heart is in his 27th year with 413. In All-Time Louisiana coaching leaders, Vining ranks fourth behind Grambling's coach Fred Hobdy (1967-86) with 665 wins, Northwestern State's Lee Prather (1914-50) with 473 and LSU's Dale Brown (1972-97) with 448.
Vining's mentor, Lenny Fant (ULM 1953-79), ranks sixth in the group with
332 wins.
The veteran coach has been at the helm of the Indians since 1981 when he took over for Coach Benny Hollis at what was then Northeast Louisiana University.
Of active coaches at the same school, Vining nationally ranks fifth behind Boehiem.
Rick Samuels at Eastern Illinois, Gene Keady at Purdue and Mike Krzyzewski at Duke are all in their 25th year at their respective institutions. Vining points to the importance of the hometown advantage over his program.
"This is home to me," he said. "If you have everyone working
together and you are fortunate enough to stay at one place, good things are going to happen."
Vining has guided the Indians to seven trips to the NCAA Tournament, the last one in 1996. He has also led them to the National Invitational Tournament twice and has lead them to six 20-win seasons, as well as nine conference titles.
The Tribe has not missed a trip to the Southland dance during his tenure. Vining has won more SLC regular season titles, seven, than any coach in the conference.
