Rebuilding from scratch, Johnny Dawkins defies expectations, leading UCF to upsets and elite company. His coaching prowess secures a coveted "Immortal" status.
The 2025-26 season marked Johnny Dawkins' 10th year as the UCF Knights' coach, and throughout the trials and tribulations, he's been categorized as one of the three "immortal" coaches in college.
X user Trilly Donovan posted an eight-category list reflecting the coaching status of 105 college programs nationally. The categories' names are "Hot Seat," "Monitoring closely (50/50)," "Hot seat next year," "Interim/Open," "Mark Turgeon," "Old Guys," "Hot Commodities," and "IMMORTAL."
UCF appears in the "IMMORTAL" category, alongside Clemson and Robert Morris University. Dawkins has earned his nomination due to the Knights' success this season.
The 10th-year coach has his team sitting with a 19-7 overall record and an 8-6 conference record. As their record stands, they are on pace to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.
In the 19 wins accumulated, UCF has upset two top-25 teams: then-No. 17 Kansas (81-75) and then-No. 11 Texas Tech (88-80).
Dawkins is also having a successful season with zero returning scorers from last year. The Knights lost 59.7 points in scoring when guards Darius Johnson and Jordan Ivy-Curry, forward Keyshawn Hall and center Moustapha Thiam left.
After an active session in the transfer portal, Dawkins rebuilt his team and recruited 52.9 points in scoring from guards Riley Kugel and Themus Fulks and forwards Jamichael Stillwell and Jordan Burks.
Dawkins has helped his team snap a three-game losing streak to start February, and they are currently on a two-game winning streak.
With two games remaining in the month, he has the chance to break the annual February curse and finish the month with a winning record, which UCF hasn't done in three years.
Dawkins and his squad face another difficult challenge on the road to the NCAA Tournament, as they matchup against No. 19 Brigham Young and superstar freshman AJ Dybantsa on Tuesday.
It will present the Knights' coach with an opportunity to add another upset victory to his resume and give his team back-to-back 20-win seasons. Dawkins' resiliency has contributed to his team's success and his lengthy tenure as UCF's coach.
Tuesday's game will take place at the Marriott Center at 11 p.m. on ESPN+
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