Alan Major, a veteran coach with more than 25 years of experience at several levels of basketball, reunited with Coach Steve Lavin as an assistant at the University of San Diego in October 2025.
Major and Lavin's relationship goes back almost 30 years, as Major got his start as a student manager under the legendary Gene Keady as an undergraduate student at Purdue until 1992. It was there that he and Lavin first worked together, while the latter was also getting his start as an assistant coach with the Boilermakers.
Coach Major spent a combined 18 years as an assistant men's basketball coach at Ohio State, Pacific, Southern Illinois and Cal Lutheran before being named the head men's coach at Charlotte prior to the start of the 2010-11 season. He led the 49ers for four-plus seasons, including a 21-12 record and a National Invitation Tournament appearance in 2012-13.
Most recently, Major consulted for the Butler men's basketball coaching staff under his former colleague at Ohio State, Thad Matta, while also co-hosting the Rising Coaches Podcast.
From 2021-23 Major worked as an assistant coach at the Nigerian National Team training camps. He was also the head coach of the Rwanda Patriots during that time, a member of the NBA-founded Basketball Africa League. He led the Patriots to win the first ever game in the league's history in 2021.
In 2018-19 Major served as Director of Player Development with the Texas Longhorns women's basketball team. With his support, the team finished with a 23-10 and a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Major was at Ohio State for six seasons, helping the Buckeyes to a 156-54 record, four NCAA Tournament appearances, a school-record 35 wins in 2006-07, three outright Big Ten regular-season titles and two league tournament titles. In 2009-10, Ohio State reached the NCAA Sweet Sixteen after winning both the Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles. In 2007, the Buckeyes reached the NCAA National Championship game and in 2008, they won the NIT title.
Coach Major was instrumental in the recruitment and development of such players as No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden, Mike Conley, Daequan Cook, Kosta Koufos and Evan Turner at Ohio State. All were NBA first-round draft choices while Turner swept the 2010 National Player of the Year awards, including the Wooden Award, the Naismith Trophy and the USBWA, Associated Press and NABC Player of the Year awards.
Prior to his time at Ohio State, Major coached NBA first round choice David West at Xavier and NBA No. 1 draft choice Michael Olowokandi at Pacific.
In his three seasons at Xavier, the Musketeers went 78-23 with three NCAA appearances, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 2004. He coached for a total of five seasons at Pacific, and helped the Tigers to the 1997 NCAA Tournament. He coached for one season at Southern Illinois under Bruce Weber. His career as a coach began at Cal Lutheran where he helped the Kingsmen to a 61-22 record in three seasons, including trips to the NCAA Div. III Tournament in 1993 and 1994.
Major graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Education degree in sociology in 1992, serving as a manager for Gene Keady's Boilermakers, including spending the 1991 and 1992 seasons as head manager. He earned his Master of Education degree in physical education from California Lutheran University in 1995.
THE ALAN MAJOR FILE
EDUCATION
1992 - Purdue University - [B.Ed. - Sociology]
1995 - California Lutheran University - [M.Ed. - Physical Education]
COACHING EXPERIENCE
1992-95 - Cal Lutheran [Men's Assistant Coach]
1995-98 - Pacific [Men's Assistant Coach]
1998-99 - Southern Illinois [Men's Assistant Coach]
1999-00 - Pacific [Men's Assistant Coach]
2001-04 - Xavier [Men's Assistant Coach]
2004-10 - Ohio State [Men's Assistant Coach]
2010-15 - Charlotte [Men's Head Coach]
2016-17 - Ohio State [Men's Director of Recruiting and Player Development]
2018-19 - Texas [Women's Director of Player Development]
2021-23 - Nigerian National Team [Assistant Coach]
