St. John's Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino's expectations remain high entering the 2026-27 college basketball season. He is beginning his 39th season as a head coach and his fourth as the head coach of the Red Storm.
CBS Sports creates an annual list of the Top 25 coaches in men's college basketball. This year's list includes an identical look at the top.
For the second straight year, Pitino finds himself ranking in the top three on the list, specifically third in both years. The top three remain unchanged, as UConn Huskies' Dan Hurley is in first for the third consecutive year, with Kelvin Sampson of the University of Houston ranking second.
Pitino guided St. John's to an 18-2 Big East conference record in each of the past two seasons, which tied the conference record for the most wins in a single season. In each of those seasons, the Red Storm won consecutive Big East regular season championships and the Big East Tournament Championship.
Rick Pitino worthy of lofty spot in head coach rankings
During the 2025-26 campaign, Pitino's team went 21-2 over their final 23 games of the season. The only two losses came to powerhouse teams: the No. 1 Duke Blue Devils and No. 6 UConn.
This impressive turnaround led to St. John's finishing with a 30-7 overall record. They became just the fourth team in program history to reach 30 wins, including the 31-5 overall record the Red Storm achieved during the 2024-25 season.
St. John's made an appearance in the Sweet 16 last season, which came after an appearance in the second round of the tournament the previous year.
Going into this season, Pitino's team made a big splash by acquiring a pair of top-15 transfers in the portal. They secured commitments from the No. 4-ranked transfer, Tounde Yessoufou, from Baylor, as well as the No. 14-ranked transfer, Donnie Freeman, who previously played at Syracuse.
Rick Pitino has been at the top of college basketball for decades
The CBS Sports ranking mentions not only how long Pitino has been a coach, but also how he's been an impactful coach during his tenure from the beginning.
"At 74, he's as imposing of a presence today as he was while leading Providence to a Final Four at age 34," the CBS article says.
Bottom line, Pitino has been a successful coach for a very long time. He's been coaching for nearly five decades, and he's just as successful and impactful as he has been for all these years.
Pitino's ranking in the top three, specifically the No. 3 spot, is an accurate assessment considering the success he's had over the past two seasons guiding the Red Storm. St. John's gears up for their season that begins Nov. 2 against the Monmouth Hawks.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/st-johns as Rick Pitino Fares Well in College Basketball Coaches Ranking.