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Dusty May, Florida Atlantic head coach

Sixth-year Florida Atlantic Owls head coach Dusty May has emerged as a big-time coaching candidates for some of the bigger job openings in the nation entering the offseason.

After leading Florida Atlantic to the program's first ever appearance in the Final Four last season, May has become one of the hottest head coaching names in college basketball. He's followed up the success he built at Florida Atlantic last season with a 24-win regular season during the 2023-24 campaign.

Even more impressive is the fact that May led the Owls to a record of 14-4 in conference play in their first year competing in a power conference in college hoops. FAU finished in second place in the regular season conference standings in its first year playing in the American Athletic Conference.

The Owls are among the favorites to win the AAC Tournament crown this week, along with the regular season conference champion South Florida Bulls. FAU is also on pace to get a mid-to-high single-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row this postseason.

A potential hurdle for any school targeting May as a potential coaching candidate entering the offseason is the contract extension he just signed for 10 years at FAU. Last year, he signed a 10-year contract extension with FAU that would mean an expensive buyout for any school that considers potentially hiring him away in the near future.