Tennessee basketball: Ranking first five years of Vols coaches who lasted that long

Yearly record

1921-1922: 12-7-1 (1-3)

1922-1923: 15-2 (3-1)

1923-1924: 10-8 (5-5)

1924-1925: 6-8 (1-5)

1925-1926: 9-8 (1-3)

*No postseason play available during this time

Just before W.H. Britton took over Tennessee basketball, the Vols had a succession of coaches who led both football and basketball. M.B. Banks was the final coach who did that, as he was head coach of both programs right before Britton in basketball and Robert Neyland in football. You could say he was the final coach of the old-guard of the program.

Anyway, Banks gets a ton of credit for enjoying a good bit of success early on. When he took over Rocky Top, he led the program to four winning seasons in five years. It’s also worth noting that Banks took over one year after the program joined a conference for the first time, as it joined the Southern Conference in 1920.

Now, that’s a mark against him. He did have a conference title to play for, and in four of five years, he failed to have a winning record in the conference. Meanwhile, he actually had a losing record in the conference in three of five years.

Banks also had a losing season during that four-year run. Similar to Wade Houston, his first five years were his only five years on Rocky Top. However, Banks had a much greater level of success than Houston, albeit in a dramatically different time.