Dan Monson on Gonzaga's success over 25 years: 'Nobody else in the country has ever done what they’ve done'

"We had that run [in 1999] and, you know, was the start of something great. But to sustain it, what Mark [Few] has done, what Mike Roth did. Nobody else in the country has ever done what they’ve done."

Mar 21, 2024; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Long Beach State 49ers head coach Dan Monson reacts during / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

As Dan Monson returns to his hometown of Cheney, Washington, as the next head coach of the Eastern Washington Eagles, he won't be far from the once small mid-major school he helped transform into a college basketball powerhouse over 25 years ago.

A lot has changed since Monson was at the helm of Gonzaga's miraculous Elite Eight run in the 1999 NCAA Tournament. Shortly after that Monson took over as the head coach of Minnesota, where he spent eight seasons and reached one NCAA Tournament in that span. After being let go, Monson moved on to Long Beach State in 2007 and coached the Beach to the postseason in 2024 despite being fired just a week before the Big West Conference Tournament. Following what he described as "the best two weeks of his career," Monson came home to take on a new challenge at Eastern Washington after David Riley moved on to Washington State.

As for the Zags, well, they've changed drastically since Monson left all those years ago. Twenty five straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including two appearances in the national championship game and an active run of nine straight trips to the Sweet 16, on top of sending numerous All-Americans and program standouts to the NBA and professional leagues overseas. Essentially, the Catholic Jesuit school is far removed from the "mid-major" label it once owned.

Monson reflected on his time at Gonzaga, his journey at Long Beach State, conference realignment and much more on a new Gonzaga Nation episode.

Watch Dan Monson's full interview on Gonzaga Nation's YouTube channel.

Produced by Thomas Gallagher.

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Former #Gonzaga coach Dan Monson on why he took the Minnesota job after the Zags' Cinderella run in 1999: "The fact of the matter is Gonzaga wasn't ready yet. It was irresponsible for me not to take it, because I was getting married in two weeks and wanted to start a family." pic.twitter.com/sLr2fCH6Ha

— Gonzaga Bulldogs on FanNation (@FanNationZags) May 2, 2024