# Andy Kennedy

Andy Kennedy (born March 13, 1968) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the UAB Blazers men's basketball team. He was head men's basketball coach at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) from 2006 to 2018. Kennedy was a player in high school at both Winston Academy and Louisville High School. He was a 1986 Parade All-American and he went on to play for North Carolina State and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). On March 20, 2020, he was announced as the seventh head coach of UAB.

## Playing career
### College

Kennedy, a 6'7" forward, was a 1986 Parade All-American, as well as the Mississippi Player of the Year at Louisville High School. He started his collegiate career at North Carolina State where he was a member of Jim Valvano's 1987 Atlantic Coast Conference championship team.
Following his freshman season, Kennedy transferred to UAB where he played under another legendary coach, Gene Bartow. From 1988 to 1991, Kennedy was a two-time all-conference performer that led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring at 21.8 points per game in 1991. Kennedy finished his UAB career as the program's second all-time leading scorer with 1,787 points. Kennedy still holds numerous school and conference records.
On 2022 October 7 Kennedy was inducted into the UAB Sports Hall of Fame. He became just the 4th men's player selected.

### Professional

After graduation, Kennedy played briefly for the NBA's Charlotte Hornets at guard. He later began a three-year professional career abroad, playing in Greece, the Netherlands, Spain and Puerto Rico. Chronic knee problems brought his career to an early end. He had his second ACL tear and subsequently his fifth and final knee operation while playing in Puerto Rico and chose to retire as a player and transition into coaching.

## Professional career
### Early years

Kennedy's coaching career began as an assistant for the University of South Alabama during the 1994–95 season. Since then he has also served as an assistant coach at UAB from 1996 to 2001 and the University of Cincinnati from 2001 to 2005. Kennedy's first head coaching position came during the 2005–06 season when he was named interim head coach for Cincinnati after Bob Huggins resigned. He led the Bearcats to a 21–13 record and an NIT appearance that year. He was named the NY Post Big East Coach of the Year.

### Ole Miss

In his first year as head coach of Ole Miss, Kennedy led the Rebels to a 21–13 overall record and 8–8 in conference play record to become co-champions of the Southeastern Conference Western division. The Rebels made it to the semi-finals of the SEC tournament, but fell to the eventual champions, Florida. The Rebels then received an NIT berth and won the first round against Appalachian State but fell to the eventual runners-up, Clemson.
In his 12 seasons at Ole Miss, Kennedy became the program's all-time wins leader, as well as the only head coach since World War II to finish with a winning record in SEC play.
Among Kennedy's accomplishments at Ole Miss:
* Ranks 18th in SEC history with 245 wins
* One of only 23 coaches in history with 100 SEC regular season wins (only Ole Miss head coach to accomplish that feat)
* Averaged more than 21 wins per season after the program posted only 21 or more wins three times in 96 years before his arrival
* Fifth-most wins in SEC history by a coach in his 12 years in the league at one school
* One of five coaches in SEC history to post at least nine 20-win seasons in first 11 years in the league, joining Billy Donovan, Joe B. Hall, Nolan Richardson, and Tubby Smith
* Only coach in SEC history to post 11 consecutive winning seasons after taking over a program coming off four straight losing seasons
* Six consecutive seasons of .500-or-better in SEC play (2012–2017) for the first time in program history
* Nine 20-win seasons under Kennedy; Seven 20-win seasons in 96 years before his arrival
* Eight postseason berths and 11 of the program's 20 all-time postseason wins
* During his tenure, was one of just two teams in the SEC and 14 power conference programs in the nation to have 11 straight winning seasons
* One of 20 programs in the country to finish in the RPI Top 100 for 11 consecutive seasons
* Finished with a .500-or-better record against 10 SEC teams
* Produced 12 all-league guards and 16 All-SEC selections
* 2013 SEC Tournament Champions
* 2 SEC West Division titles (2007, 2010)
* 2 NIT Final Four appearances
* 2-time SEC Coach of the Year
* Holds 33 school records (16-team, 17 individual)
* Tied the school record with 27 wins in 2013
* Reached 100 wins faster than any coach in school history
* Nationally ranked for a total of 18 weeks, rising as high as 14th
* Produced the school's all-time leading rebounder, shot blocker, and 3-point FG shooter
* Led the SEC in scoring (77.2 ppg) for the first time in school history in 2012–2013
* In 2007–2008, set school records for longest winning streak and most wins to start a season
* In 2006–2007, won the most games (21) by a first-year Rebel head coach and received SEC Coach of the Year honors
On February 12, 2018, Kennedy initially announced that he and Ole Miss had agreed to part ways following the 2017–18 season. However, Kennedy resigned effective immediately on February 18, 2018.

### Broadcasting

In 2018, Kennedy agreed to a deal with the SEC Network to become a college basketball analyst across the ESPN family of networks. During the 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 seasons, Kennedy was featured as an in-game color analyst, studio analyst, and sideline reporter covering college basketball.

### UAB

After 2 years working with ESPN, on March 20, 2020, Kennedy was hired as the head coach at UAB, replacing Robert Ehsan. In his first year Kennedy led the Blazers to a 22–7 record. The 22 wins were the most by a first year head coach in the NCAA and the most wins for UAB since 2016. Under Kennedy's guide, UAB finished with their highest NET ranking (83) in program history and the program's highest Kenpom ranking (102) since 2011. The Blazers were led by their defense, as they finished with the most conference wins (13) in Conference USA as well as the most series sweeps. UAB finished 4th in the country in scoring defense, and the 4th best turnover margin. For the first time in school history, UAB had 2 members selected to the conference All-Defense team. Kennedy's first year leading his alma mater saw UAB reach its then-4th highest winning percentage in program history, and be one of 17 programs in America with at least 22 wins and 7 or fewer losses.
In 2021-22, Kennedy added transfer Jordan Walker in route to UAB's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2015. The Blazers finished with a record of 27-8, a then-school record for wins in a single season. Kennedy's squad finished 49th in the NET ranking 51 in Kenpom ranking The Blazers ranked 4th nationally in steals and 6th in scoring offense. UAB had two players selected All-Conference USA and one selected to the All-Defense team. Walker was also named Conference USA Player of the Year.
Kennedy's 3rd season added multiple major program accomplishments. UAB finished the campaign with a record of 29-10, a new UAB single-season record for wins (29). Kennedy led the Blazers to their second straight post-season with an appearance in the final of the NIT, their first since 2016, and UAB's first ever appearance in the final of a post-season tournament. The Blazers defeated Southeastern Conference Members Vanderbilt, Georgia, and South Carolina, UAB's first win in Bartow Arena vs a Power 5 opponent since 2013, and the 1st time in history winning three games vs the SEC in the same season. UAB finished the season ranked 47 in KenPom, the programs highest mark since 2004, and Jordan Walker and Trey Jemison each were named All-Conference USA with Jemison also being named to the All-Defensive team. The Blazers also finished 2nd nationally in rebounding.
2023-24 was Kennedy fourth and UAB's first season in the American Athletic Conference. The Blazers finished the year with a record of 23-12, winning the AAC tournament championship, and advancing to their 2nd NCAA Tournament in 3 seasons, and 3rd straight post-season appearance. Kennedy also became the fastest coach in UAB program history to reach the 100-win milestone (136 games). The Blazers defeated Maryland, their first win against a Big Ten Conference opponent since 2006. UAB also defeated two nationally ranked opponents for the first time since 2010. Junior forward Yaxel Lendeborg was named First-Team all-AAC and the conference Defensive Player of the Year, the first time UAB has had at least one first team selection three consecutive years since 2012.

## Head coaching record

Statistics overview :
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason |
| Cincinnati Bearcats (Big East Conference) (2005–2006) ||||||
| 2005–06 | Cincinnati | 21–13 | 8–8 | 8th | NIT Quarterfinals |
| Cincinnati: | Cincinnati: | 21–13 (.618) | 8–8 (.500) | | |
| Ole Miss Rebels (Southeastern Conference) (2006–2018) ||||||
| 2006–07 | Ole Miss | 21–13 | 8–8 | T–1st (West) | NIT Second Round |
| 2007–08 | Ole Miss | 24–11 | 7–9 | 3rd (West) | NIT Semifinals |
| 2008–09 | Ole Miss | 16–15 | 7–9 | T–4th (West) | |
| 2009–10 | Ole Miss | 24–11 | 9–7 | T–1st (West) | NIT Semifinals |
| 2010–11 | Ole Miss | 20–14 | 7–9 | T–3rd (West) | NIT First Round |
| 2011–12 | Ole Miss | 20–14 | 8–8 | T–6th | NIT First Round |
| 2012–13 | Ole Miss | 27–9 | 12–6 | T–2nd | NCAA Division I Round of 32 |
| 2013–14 | Ole Miss | 19–14 | 9–9 | T–6th | |
| 2014–15 | Ole Miss | 21–13 | 11–7 | T–3rd | NCAA Division I Round of 64 |
| 2015–16 | Ole Miss | 20–12 | 10–8 | T–6th | |
| 2016–17 | Ole Miss | 22–14 | 10–8 | T–5th | NIT Quarterfinals |
| 2017–18 | Ole Miss | 11–16 | 4–10 | | |
| Ole Miss: | Ole Miss: | 245–156 (.611) | 102–98 (.510) | | |
| UAB Blazers (Conference USA) (2020–2023) ||||||
| 2020–21 | UAB | 22–7 | 13–5 | 2nd (West) | |
| 2021–22 | UAB | 27–8 | 14–4 | 2nd (West) | NCAA Division I Round of 64 |
| 2022–23 | UAB | 29–10 | 14–6 | 3rd | NIT Runner-up |
| UAB Blazers (American Athletic Conference) (2023–present) ||||||
| 2023–24 | UAB | 23–12 | 12–6 | 4th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 |
| 2024–25 | UAB | 22–12 | 13–5 | 3rd | NIT |
| UAB: | UAB: | 123–49 (.715) | 66–26 (.717) | | |
| Total: | Total: | 389–218 (.641) | | | |
| National champion   Postseason invitational champion   Conference regular season champion   Conference regular season and conference tournament champion  Division regular season champion  Division regular season and conference tournament champion  Conference tournament champion ||||||