DALLAS – After guiding his team to its first CUSA tournament title, Kennesaw State head coach Antoine Pettway was named the 2026 Ben Jobe National Coach of the Year announced Thursday by CollegeInsider.com. The award is presented annually to the top minority head coach in Division I college basketball.
 
Pettway led the Owls to a historic season with their first CUSA tournament championship and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. KSU finished the regular season with a 21-14 overall mark and a 10-10 record in league play. The 21 wins were the second most in program history.
 
After battling adversity for parts of the regular season, the Owls became the only team in the country to knock off three top-four seeds in their conference tournament, taking down No. 3 WKU, No. 2 Sam Houston and No. 4 LA Tech. Sophomore guard RJ Johnson was named tournament MVP and was a first team All-CUSA selection. Braedan Lue was named to the All-Defensive Team, while Trey Simpson was a CUSA All-Freshman honoree.
 
He is the first coach in KSU men’s basketball history (DI era) to lead the Owls to consecutive winning seasons. Pettway is the fastest coach to reach the 50-win mark as he boasts a 55-44 record through three seasons.