William John Donovan Jr. is the name he was born with. But he’s known by a few other names… to most of us it’s Billy Donovan, and others call him BillyD or Billy “The Kid”. The latter isn’t so fitting any more. Coach Donovan will turn 47 years old this year, he is the Dean of the SEC Coaches, and has been at Florida for 16 seasons. A “Kid” he is not.
The University of Florida is a football school. Florida basketball fans are in denial if they think otherwise. However, you can make a strong argument that the most successful National Championship winning coach at Florida ever is Billy Donovan (no offense to Mike Halloway). Coach Donovan has a sick resume in his 16 seasons at UF. He has put Florida into the NCAA Tournament 12 times, has 3 Final Four appearances, 2 Championships, and a pretty good record of sending talent to the league:
- Matt Bonner (2nd round, 45th pick, 2003 NBA Draft)
- Corey Brewer (1st round, 7th pick, 2007 NBA Draft)
- Udonis Haslem (2003 undrafted free agent)
- Donnell Harvey (1st round, 22nd pick, 2000 NBA Draft)
- Mike Miller (1st round, 5th pick, 2000 NBA Draft)
- Al Horford (1st round, 3rd pick, 2007 NBA Draft)
- David Lee (1st round, 30th pick, 2005 NBA Draft)
- Vernon Macklin (2nd round, 52nd pick, 2011 NBA Draft)
- Joakim Noah (1st round, 9th pick, 2007 NBA Draft)
- Chandler Parsons (2nd round, 38th pick, 2011 NBA Draft)
- Marreese Speights (1st round, 18th pick, 2008 NBA Draft)
- Jason Williams (1st round, 7th pick, 1998 NBA Draft)
- Nick Calathes (2nd round, 45th pick, 2009 NBA Draft)
Donovan has consistently recruited a specific type of player. He doesn’t always get it right, example Florida’s record on transfers has NOT been stellar, but Coach Donovan has often had over achieving teams. You can see Coach Donovan’s yearly records and his Tournament results below…
| Year | Overall | Conference | SEC Standing | Tournament Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 13–17 | 5–11 | 5th (East) | |
| 1997 | 14–15 | 6–10 | 6th (East) | NIT 1st Round |
| 1998 | 22–9 | 10–6 | 3rd (East) | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 1999 | 29–8 | 12–4 | T–1st (East) | NCAA Runner-up |
| 2000 | 24–7 | 12–4 | T–1st (East) | NCAA 2nd Round |
| 2001 | 22–9 | 10–6 | T–1st (East) | NCAA 1st Round |
| 2002 | 25–8 | 12–4 | 2nd (East) | NCAA 2nd Round |
| 2003 | 20–11 | 9–7 | 2nd (East) | NCAA 1st Round |
| 2004 | 24–8 | 12–4 | 2nd (East) | NCAA 2nd Round |
| 2005 | 33–6 | 10–6 | 2nd (East) | NCAA Champions |
| 2006 | 35–5 | 13–3 | 1st (East) | NCAA Champions |
| 2007 | 24–12 | 8–8 | 4th (East) | NIT Semifinals |
| 2008 | 25–11 | 9–7 | 3rd (East) | NIT Quarterfinals |
| 2009 | 21–13 | 9–7 | 4th (East) | NCAA 1st Round |
| 2010 | 29–8 | 13–3 | 1st (East) | NCAA Elite Eight |
| 2011 | 26–10 | 10–6 | T–2nd | TBD |
Today Coach Donovan’s Gators prepare for an Elite 8 Tournament match up against Rick Pitino’s Louisville Cardinals. A lot has been made of Donovan’s 0-6 record against his mentor Pitino. It is true Pitino has owned Donovan, but the 2011-2012 Gators have been playing their best basketball of the year during the tournament and that is with the team not shooting so hot from three point land. If the Gators can put it all together today then Louisville is in big trouble, and Donovan will have his fourth Final Four appearance in 16 seasons. Follow us on twitter –> BourbonMeyer or on Facebook –> BourbonMeyer for game updates and witty commentary. Here’s how you can watch the game…
Time: 4:30pm (EST)
TV: CBS
Online Video: CBS.com
Assuming Coach Donovan chooses to continue coaching, he is surely destined to be remembered as one of the top coaches in college basketball. He routinely is one top recruit away. Perhaps another Final Four appearance with over achieving talent will change that.
*Please note: we purposefully skipped the part of Coach Donovan’s history when he spurn Florida for the Orlando Magic. We choose to remember only the happy times. Go Gators!!*
Don’t for get the draft rights of Nick Calathes to the Mav’s (even though he is playing overseas, he was still drafted).
forget* thanks auto correct on my phone.
Fixed Thanks!