Florida Atlantic head basketball coach Dusty May has been hired to the same role at the University of Michigan, the school announced Saturday afternoon.
When May took the FAU job in March of 2018, the Owls hadn’t recorded a winning season in seven years. The former UAB assistant quickly instituted one of the most dramatic turnarounds in the history of college basketball, taking Florida Atlantic to the Final Four just five seasons after his arrival.
May leaves Boca Raton with 126 victories under his belt, only four of which came against UAB; the Blazers sport a .600 winning percentage against the departing coach. However, May’s Owls dealt the Green and Gold multiple heartbreaking losses, most notably a blowout in the 2023 Conference USA title game.
May, rumored for much of the last week to be going to Louisville, shocked the college basketball world with a late change of heart. On Saturday morning, May’s agent, Andy Miller, reportedly told Louisville officials that May was committed to being the Cardinals’ coach, prompting UL to set up a press conference.
Just eight hours later, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news that May was going to Michigan. UM president Santa Ono quickly confirmed Wojnarowski’s report.
According to Wojnarowski, May “ultimately became swept away with Michigan’s alumni network and its fierce loyalty to the university and athletics,” prompting him to choose UM over Louisville and Vanderbilt. His contract will last five years, and details of the deal were being finalized “late into Saturday evening.”
The news has far-reaching implications on the AAC basketball landscape. It’s unclear how May’s departure will affect stars Johnell Davis, Alijah Martin, and Vlad Goldin, each of whom has one more year of eligibility. All three players have been with the Owls since at least 2022; May is the only college coach Davis and Martin have ever played for.
FAU is now thrust into uncertain waters — the program has never experienced sustained success under another coach. Before 2018, the Owls sported a paltry 36% all-time winning percentage, one of the worst marks of any D1 program.
Early candidates to fill May’s position include Josh Schertz, an FAU alumnus who just led Indiana State to a 29-6 record, current FAU assistant Kyle Church, and Georgia assistant Erik Pastrana, who was on the FAU staff in 2018-2019.