Watson included on Top 50 coaches list

Courtesy of Miles Athletics Even as the college sports world has significantly slowed in recent months, the national recognition has continued to swell for Miles head men’s basketball coach Fred Watson.

This month, Watson was named one of the Top 50 Most Influential Coaches in the NCAA Division II and NAIA ranks by Silver Waves Media, an outlet based on the west coast that covers multiple sports over different platforms. He is the only Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference coach on the list and just one of two from Historically Black Colleges/Universities.

Silver Waves Media highlighted Watson’s ability to bring in solid basketball players during his career. But just as important to winning on the court has been the work in the classroom. This past academic year, his team posted a cumulative grade point average of 3.388.

“This is quite an honor for me, personally, but I accept it on behalf of the great student-athletes, my outstanding coaches, the administrators who have given me an opportunity to coach and everyone who has supported our efforts of not just building a strong program, but having an impact on the lives of the young men who have played for me,” Watson said. “It takes dedication and support from everyone to allow us to produce the results on and off the court.”

This past season – just his second at the helm of the Golden Bears program – Watson led Miles to the SIAC Western Division and Tournament titles for the second straight season. Miles finished the 2019-20 season 24-4 – which gave the team its first back-to-back 20-win campaign in school history –  and a 13-game win streak was the longest in-season run in team annuls. Miles was ranked as high as 19th in the nation, led the country in scoring defense for the second consecutive year and boasted the SIAC’s Player of the Year in Avery Brown, who earned All-Region and All-America honors.

Additionally, Watson earned his seventh SIAC Coach of the Year award and first with the Golden Bears. He is just the second coach to win this award for two different schools, also earning the honor at Benedict in 2013. BoxToRow Media also named Watson its Division II National Coach of the Year as Miles earned its second straight NCAA Division II tournament bid.

Over an 18-year career, Watson has been a consistent winner. He is currently in a run of 17 consecutive winning seasons that has included 11 NCAA Tournament selections, 10 20-win seasons and seven SIAC Tournament titles. Overall, he won nearly 70 percent of his games (365-163), earning his 350th career victory this past season after a win over LeMoyne-Owen on Jan.11.