With more than 850 games under his belt, former Opelika High School head boys' coach Mike Pugh has been named the new head men's basketball coach at Huntingdon. Pugh will join the staff June 1.
Previous coach Tony Duckworth left to become athletic director at Maryville (Mo.).
“I have followed Coach Pugh throughout his entire career,” athletic director Buzz Phillips said. “His teams are well coached and well disciplined and that is the Mike Pugh that I know. He was very successful at the college ranks at Enterprise State Junior College, and I feel he will be equally successful here at Huntingdon on the NCAA Division III level. He has a great recruiting network already developed and will benefit greatly from the coaches and administrators that he knows. Coach Pugh knows what type of student-athlete can excel at Huntingdon College, and I feel that this program will continue to flourish under his leadership.”
A native of Auburn, Ala., Pugh sports a career 605-260 record during his 30-year coaching tenure, making stops at both the prep and junior college level.
“I am very excited to be part of such a prestigious college,” Pugh said. “At this point in my career, my wife Suzanne and I feel blessed to have this opportunity. My basketball philosophy has always been to entertain the fans. I think fans come to see a fast-paced offense with pressure defense and that is what we are going to try to do. We will look to attack both on the offensive and defensive end of the court. I am looking forward to the challenge of carrying on the tradition of basketball at Huntingdon College and taking it to new heights.”
Pugh joins the program after spending the past seven seasons at Opelika High School, where he served as head boys' basketball coach and an assistant football coach. During his tenure with the Bulldogs, Pugh guided OHS to three state playoff appearances and two area championships, highlighted by a 28-2 mark this past season.
Prior to joining the Bulldogs, Pugh spent seven years at Enterprise State Junior College, now Enterprise-Ozark Community College, serving in a variety of capacities, including athletic director, head men's basketball coach, and head women's basketball coach. He was also the Department Head of the Physical Education department and Director of Intramurals. In his seven-year stint at the collegiate level, Pugh mounted 110 victories, compared to only 76 defeats.
In the five seasons before coaching at ESJC, Pugh amassed a 61-54 record as head boys' basketball coach at Carroll High School in Ozark, Ala. Also spending time as an assistant baseball and football coach, Pugh led the Eagles to two area championships and a pair of state playoff appearances on the hardwood.
Pugh made a name for himself among elite prep coaches at Southside High School in Selma, Ala. During a seven-year span with the Panthers, Pugh earned a 134-42 record, while helping the squad to state playoff appearances during all seven seasons and five area championships. In 1985, Pugh guided Southside to the only Alabama High School Athletic Association State Championship in school history, while helping the Panthers to state runner-up honors in 1986.
Pugh began his coaching career with an eight-year stint at John T. Morgan Academy. In his eight seasons at the helm, the school went 177-32. He guided the Senators to the state tournament six times, including the state championship in 1978. He also finished as state runner-up once, while four additional seasons ended in the state semifinals.
Pugh earned his bachelor's degree from Auburn in health, physical education, and recreation in 1974 and his master's degree from Alabama State in 1987.