Butler head coach Brad Stevens is 34 years old. It's impressive enough that he can get kids half his age to listen to him. The fact that he took his team to the national championship last year and the Sweet 16 this year? That's bordering on remarkable.
While Saturday's win wasn't impressive in terms of sheer aestheticism, it was impressive in terms of basketball success. In just four years, Stevens has steadily improved the Butler program to the point where they must now be looked at as a legitimate contender in the way that Gonzaga has shot up the college hoops ranks in the last 10 years or so.
In just four years, Stevens has spit out win totals of 30, 26, 33 and 25. They were literally inches from knocking off Duke in last year's national championship. And then, this year, after falling off some, they apparently saved best basketball for right now when it matters most, as evidenced by Saturday night win's over No. 1 seed Pittsburgh.
If Stevens, who left a marketing job to pursue his coaching career, chooses to do so, he could leave Butler as soon as the season ends and take the best job on the market. Last year's national runner-up has a lot to do with that, but in time, it could be the win on Saturday night that really legitimizes what he's done in so little time with the Bulldogs.
On Saturday night, Stevens proved that he has staying power. He proved he and his team were not one-year wonders. He proved that he is consistent. That word, consistent, is a word that athletic directors drool over.
Stevens signed a contract extension that should keep him at Butler for a long time. As NCAA coaches have shown us over the years, though, that extension means little. Stevens has earned the right to choose which program he oversees.
Whether that program is Butler or a high-profile program down the road, one thing looks to be certain: Brad Stevens will be a winner no matter where he calls home.
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