April 2, 2026

KENNESAW STATE’S ANTOINE PETTWAY RECIPIENT OF 2026 BEN JOBE AWARD
The top minority head coach in division I college basketball

INDIANAPOLIS, IN -- Kennesaw State’s Antoine Pettway is the recipient of the 2026 Ben Jobe National Coach of the Year award, which is presented annually to the top minority head coach in division I college basketball.

It was an historic season for Pettway who led Kennesaw State to their first-ever Conference USA tournament championship. The Owls finished 21-14 overall. The 21 wins were the second most in program history.

“I don’t think enough attention has been given to Coach Pettway for the job he did this season,” said Angela Lento, Vice President of College Insider, Inc. and member of the Ben Jobe award voting panel. “There is adversity and then there is the type of adversity that he had to deal with. A lot of teams would have faded to the bottom of the standings, but his team ascended to the top. He’s a leader and a winner. I would want my son to play for Antoine Pettway.”

Injuries and a player suspension reduced the KSU roster to seven scholarship players. Simeon Cottle, who was named to the Lou Henson award 'Early Season' Watch List, was suspended indefinitely after being indicted in an alleged point shaving scandal.

Despite the adversity, the Owls finished the regular season with an 18-13 overall record, the third-most wins in school history (D1 era). They also recorded 10 conference victories, marking the first time the program has ever recorded double-digit conference wins in back-to-back years.

Three Kennesaw State men's basketball players earned All-CUSA accolades, led by RJ Johnson who was named First-Team All-CUSA honors. Braedan Lue was named to the CUSA All-Defensive squad, while Trey Simpson was selected to the CUSA All-Freshman team.

The starting lineup was an oddity in today’s college basketball world, as there was not a single senior or transfer player in the starting five. Kennesaw State was the only team in college basketball with such a lineup.

The Owls were one of just three teams to make the NCAA Tournament with a starting five having played their entire career at their current school (Michigan State, Santa Clara). The Owls were also just one of two schools in this year’s tournament field to start four underclassmen, along with Duke.

Now in his third season, Pettway became the fastest coach in school history to reach 50 wins at the division I level, in just his 91st career game.

The Ben Jobe Award is named in honor of one of the most iconic coaches in the history of basketball at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He is best known as the head coach of Southern University, a position he held for 12 seasons. He was also head coach at Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Talladega, Tuskegee, and South Carolina State.

His record at Southern was 209-141 and included four NCAA Tournament appearances. He also coached the Jaguars to one NIT appearance, five SIAC championships, 11 SWAC titles and two NAIA Tournament Championships. Perhaps his most memorable moment as a coach was leading No. 15 seed Southern to a 93-78 win over No. 2 Georgia Tech in the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament. It stands as one of the great upsets in the history of the event.

Coach Jobe passed away on March 10, 2017.


  BEN JOBE AWARD FINALISTS

PREVIOUS AWARD WINNERS
Chris Crutchfield, Omaha (2025); Donte' Jackson, Grambling (2024); Jerry Stackhouse, Vanderbilt (2023); Kelvin Sampson, Houston (2022); Leonard Hamilton, Florida State (2021); Damon Stoudamire, Pacific (2020); James Jones, Yale (2019); Donte' Jackson, Grambling (2018); Jamion Christian, Mount St. Mary's (2017); Dana Ford, Tennessee State (2016); Bobby Collins, UMES (2015); Willis Wilson, Texas A&M Corpus Christi (2016); Kevin Ollie, Connecticut (2015); Sean Woods, Mississippi Valley State (2014); Cuonzo Martin, Missouri State (2013); Ed Cooley, Fairfield (2012).

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NOTE: Portions of the press release came from Kennesaw State releases.