It has been eight years since the Butler Bulldogs have made the Men’s basketball NCAA tournament. Their last appearance in the 2017-2018 season where they lost in the Round of 32 to Purdue. Since then they have had an overall record of 129-138 and two different head coaches. They hired Thad Matta in April of 2022. The accomplished coach brought a lot of excitement back to the university, however many felt he had coached past his time as Butler failed to make a tournament appearance in his four year stint, leading to his retirement on March 16, 2026.
Searching for a spark to bring Butler Basketball back to its former glory, Butler turned to an accredited alumni, Ronald Nored. Nored led the 2010 and 2011 team to back to back National Championship appearances. On March 25, 2026 Nored was announced as the next head coach for the men’s basketball team.
“It was a long two weeks,” senior point guard, Jalen Jackson, said.
The wait was well worth it as others think a familiar face might just be what the program needs to revive the success Butler once had.
“It makes me excited because you saw the passion he has for the program and wants to see Butler succeed,” North Central junior Hugo Smith said.
In order to bring the success back from the early 2010’s, Nored is looking to revive the grit and strong defensive identity that not only those teams carried, but he carried as a leader. He made this his top priority when Butler held their public introduction at Hinkle Fieldhouse introducing Nored as head coach.
“We’re going to play a great style of basketball that is going to be characterised first by tough, physical defenses that have been the bedrock of great Butler teams,” Nored said.
The defense is a place for Butler to start as they look to rise back to prominence. Nored’s real strong suit is his strong leadership, personality and professional manner. Those traits helped convince Jackson, who missed most of last season due to an ankle injury, to return for his final year.
“You can just tell he means business, like he wants to win. I feel like, that’s what you need is, someone who’s leading the culture, someone who wants to win, someone who wants to compete at the highest level,” Jackson said.
Nored carries his high professionalism from his several years he spent as an assistant coach in the NBA and as a head coach in the G-League.
“He wants to be the best, and you can see that, like, in the way he carries himself, and the way he, like, explained it to me, and I feel like that’s something that, that’s a coach that I want to play for,” Jackson said.
Many believe that with the new age of college basketball being so different to what most coaches were used to, Nored’s youth and connections can build a strong foundation for him in this new NIL era.
“College basketball is changing and with a new young coach we can better adapt to the new landscape,” Smith said.
Fans and Alumni often claim Nored represents what it means to be apart of this program at the most prestigious level. He is beloved by the community and his time as a player projected what it means to be a bulldog. Butler looks to have found the author for a new chapter of competing and winning for this program.
