Larry Holley (June 28, 1945 – May 12, 2022)[1][2] was an American college basketball coach. He was the head men's basketball coach at his alma mater, William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri. His 919 career wins made him one of only 10 four-year college coaches (National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)) to amass 900 career wins. He ranks first all-time in career wins among four-year, college coaches coaching only at Missouri colleges and universities.

Larry Holley
Biographical details
Born(1945-06-28)June 28, 1945
Bethany, Missouri, U.S.
DiedMay 12, 2022(2022-05-12) (aged 76)
Liberty, Missouri, U.S.
Playing career
c. 1967William Jewell
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1969–1975Central Methodist
1977–1979Northwest Missouri State
1979–2019William Jewell
Head coaching record
Overall919–579

Holley's teams won 20 games in a season 24 times and have posted both a 45-game conference winning streak and a 43-game home court winning streak.

He received 14 Coach of the Year awards and was elected to the Greater Kansas City Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, the Missouri Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, the NAIA Hall of Fame and the William Jewell College Athletic Hall of Fame. Holley won the William Jewell Citation for Achievement Award winner in 2009. In April 2022, he was presented with the Small College Basketball Lifetime Achievement Award.[3]

Holley joined William Jewell as head men's basketball coach for the 1979–80 season after coaching four years at Northwest Missouri State University, six years at Central Methodist University and one year at Harrisburg, Missouri High School.

He attended Jameson High School (Missouri) and graduated from William Jewell College in 1967, where he was a four-year-letterman in cross country, basketball and track. He captained in all three sports. As a basketball player, he scored a total of 1,122 points for Jewell and was an All-Conference and All-District selection his senior season. As a track runner, he won a state championship in the mile (indoor).[3]

He was a native of Jameson, Missouri. As a musician, he was a trumpet player and vocalist and a member of William Jewell's Concert and Pep Band and Chapel Choir. Holley had three daughters.[3]

Head coaching record

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Central Methodist Eagles (Missouri College Athletic Union) (1969–1971)
1969–70 Central Methodist 7–17
1970–71 Central Methodist 6–17
Central Methodist Eagles (Heart of America Athletic Conference) (1971–1975)
1971–72 Central Methodist 10–16
1972–73 Central Methodist 11–15
1973–74 Central Methodist 15–11
1974–75 Central Methodist 12–17
Central Methodist: 61–93
Northwest Missouri State Bearcats (Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1977–1979)
1977–78 Northwest Missouri State 11–15
1978–79 Northwest Missouri State 15–11
Northwest Missouri State: 26–26
William Jewell Cardinals (Heart of America Athletic Conference) (1979–2011)
1979–80 William Jewell 10–19 6–8
1980–81 William Jewell 15–13 12–4
1981–82 William Jewell 22–8 14–2 1st
1982–83 William Jewell 19–10 9–5
1983–84 William Jewell 20–8 11–3
1984–85 William Jewell 25–7 12–2 1st
1985–86 William Jewell 25–4 14–0 1st
1986–87 William Jewell 27–6 14–0 1st
1987–88 William Jewell 32–2 13–1 1st NAIA Division I Elite Eight
1988–89 William Jewell 14–14 5–6
1989–90 William Jewell 12–18 4–10
1990–91 William Jewell 20–11 10–4 1st
1991–92 William Jewell 23–13 9–3 NAIA Division II Elite Eight
1992–93 William Jewell 27–10 15–1 1st NAIA Division II Final Four
1993–94 William Jewell 25–10 11–5
1994–95 William Jewell 29–10 10–6 NAIA Division II Final Four
1995–96 William Jewell 30–9 10–6
1996–97 William Jewell 29–10 14–4 1st NAIA Division II Final Four
1997–98 William Jewell 28–9 16–2 NAIA Division II Sweet 16
1998–99 William Jewell 24–11 12–6
1999–00 William Jewell 17–17 7–11
2000–01 William Jewell 19–14 13–7
2001–02 William Jewell 22–12 15–5
2002–03 William Jewell 24–13 16–4 NAIA Division II Sweet 16
2003–04 William Jewell 33–5 18–2 1st NAIA Division II Final Four
2004–05 William Jewell 31–6 17–3 1s NAIA Division II Sweet 16
2005–06 William Jewell 27–8 16–4 NAIA Division II Sweet 16
2006–07 William Jewell 17–15 11–9
2007–08 William Jewell 20–13 14–6
2008–09 William Jewell 23–11 14–6 1st NAIA Division I Sweet 16
2009–10 William Jewell 22–11 14–6 NAIA Division I First Round
2010–11 William Jewell 25–8 15–5 NAIA Division I First Round
William Jewell Cardinals (Great Lakes Valley Conference) (2011–2019)
2011–12 William Jewell 9–17 5–13 7th (West)
2012–13 William Jewell 13–14 9–9 4th (West)
2013–14 William Jewell 11–16 7–11 T–4th (West)
2014–15 William Jewell 13–15 9–9 4th (West)
2015–16 William Jewell 9–18 14–5 2nd (West)
2016–17 William Jewell 9–18 4–14 T–6th (West)
2017–18 William Jewell 20–9 10–8 3rd (West)
2018–19 William Jewell 12–18 6–12 10th
William Jewell: 832–460 455–227
Total: 919–579

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "NCAA® Career Statistics".
  2. ^ Hall of Fame William Jewell basketball coach Larry Holley dies at 76
  3. ^ a b c "Farewell to Coach Larry Holley". William Jewell College. 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
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