And that he has.

Konkol recently wrapped up his sixth season at the helm of the Bulldogs, guiding LA Tech to a 24-8 overall record, a Conference USA West Division title and a third place finish in the National Invitation Tournament.  As a result, he garnered numerous awards including C-USA Coach of the Year, NABC District 11 Coach of the Year, LABC Louisiana Major College Coach of the Year and LSWA Louisiana Coach of the Year.  He was also a finalist for the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award.   

The Bulldogs won 12 of their final 14 regular season games and advanced to the C-USA Tournament semifinals.  They received an at-large berth to play in the NIT for the first time since 2015 and became just the second team in program history to make the Final Four.  The 'Dogs upset Ole Miss in the first round, took down league foe Western Kentucky in the quarterfinals and won a 76-74 thriller over No. 1 overall seed Colorado State in the Final Four consolation game.

Konkol and his staff produced the highest-rated defense in C-USA, ranking 39th in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency.  The team also ranked No. 1 in the league and top 30 in the country in field goal percentage defense and three-point field goal percentage defense. 

It marked the program's 27th 20+ win season and the eighth in the last nine seasons (five under Konkol which is the most of any Tech head coach all-time).  His 129 total wins as head coach ranks fourth in program history.  The Bulldogs were stellar at home yet again, going 15-1 for a third straight season.     

Despite the shortened 2019-20 season due to the public health threat of COVID-19, Konkol was named the LSWA Louisiana Coach of the Year and the LABC Louisiana Major College Coach of the Year after guiding LA Tech to a 22-8 overall record.  The 22 wins was the most victories of any Conference USA team and of any Louisiana Division I team.  The Bulldogs also recorded a 13-5 league record, finishing in a tie for second place.

The 'Dogs, who had the highest NET ranking and highest KenPom ranking of any C-USA squad, had several marquee wins.  The biggest one in non-conference came against Mississippi State in Starkville as the 74-67 victory ended their SEC-leading 26-game non-conference winning streak.  The biggest one in league play came at North Texas, winning 73-71 to hand the C-USA regular season champions their only conference home loss.  There was also the 76-73 victory at home over Old Dominion which marked career win No. 100 for Konkol, becoming the sixth head coach in program history to reach this milestone.
 
LA Tech was one of only eight teams in the country to rank in the top 40 in FG percentage and FG percentage defense. 

In 2018-19, he led the squad to a 20-win season with eight of those victories coming against teams who also produced 20-win seasons, the most in a single season in program history.  One of those came in the season opener at Wichita State as the Bulldogs shocked the Shockers, handing them only their fourth loss in their last 76 games at home.

Konkol's third season in 2017-18 produced a winning season and was highlighted by winning the 10th annual Cancun Challenge championship in Mexico as well as the inaugural New Orleans Shootout.  He also picked up career win No. 50 along the way, taking him only 70 games to reach that milestone which was the fastest by a LA Tech head coach in program history.

His first two seasons he helped produce back-to-back 23-win seasons which was the most by a LA Tech head coach through his first two years at the helm. Despite being the second youngest team in the league, despite being picked seventh in the preseason poll and despite losing two seniors to season-ending injuries in the non-conference, LA Tech overcame all of that to finish second in C-USA in 2016-17.

In 2015-16, the 23 victories for Konkol was the most in program history by a first-year head coach. As a result, he was named a finalist for the 2016 Joe B. Hall Award which is presented annually to the top first-year coach in Division I college basketball.

The Bulldogs had several highlight wins during the year, defeating eight teams who advanced to the postseason (most since 1989). Of those was a win in non-conference play at Ohio State, the program's first over a Big Ten school in 30 years.

The `Dogs, led by C-USA Player of the Year and honorable mention Associated Press All-American Alex Hamilton, were picked preseason to finish fifth but ended up in a tie for third in the league to help earn the program a postseason appearance in the inaugural Vegas16 Tournament.

Hamilton is one of six Bulldogs that have received postseason honors under Konkol.  Kenneth Lofton, Jr. and Isaiah Crawford earned Third Team All-Conference USA accolades in 2020-21.  DaQuan Bracey was a First Team All-Conference USA selection in 2019-20 and Erik McCree and Jacobi Boykins were both two-time All-Conference USA selections.  Four players have also been named to the All-Freshman Team, including Lofton, Jr. and Bracey who both earned C-USA Freshman of the Year honors.

Konkol came to Ruston having spent the previous four seasons on the staff of Miami's head coach Jim Larranaga. Prior to that, he was with Larranaga for seven years at George Mason assisting in all aspects including recruiting, practices, individual player workouts and game preparation.

Known as the team's offensive coordinator, he aided the 2014-15 Hurricanes team to a 25-13 record, the second most wins in program history, and an appearance in the National Invitation Tournament Championship game.

Miami snapped two impressive winning streaks along the way, defeating eventual national champion Duke, 90-74, at Cameron Indoor Stadium, ending the Blue Devils' 41-game home winning streak which was the longest active streak in Division I at the time.

The Canes also defeated then-No. 8/7 Florida in a non-conference battle which snapped the Gators' 33-game home winning streak was the third longest in the country.

In his third season at Miami, Konkol and the Canes returned no starters from the previous season, but the team still posted its seventh-straight winning season with a 17-16 overall record while ranking No. 2 in field goal defense and No. 3 in scoring defense in the ACC, good enough for No. 11 and No. 39 nationally.

The program saw several firsts in his second season, including the Canes ACC regular season and tournament championships, a No. 2 ranking in the national polls and 29 total victories with 15 league wins. Miami matched program bests in earning a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament and playing in the Sweet 16.

Konkol helped lead Miami that season to four 20+ point wins over ACC opponents, including a 27-point rout of No. 1 Duke and a 26-point victory against North Carolina. Miami was the first team to beat Duke and UNC by 25+ points since the start of ACC play in 1953 and the Canes defeated three teams in the Top 20 for the first time since joining the ACC in 2004-05.

Konkol worked daily with ACC and Lute Olson National Player of the Year and All-American Shane Larkin, who left UM after his sophomore season to enter the 2013 NBA Draft. Larkin was a finalist for the Bob Cousy, Naismith and John R. Wooden awards and named the ACC tournament MVP. Konkol also improved the games of ACC Defensive Player of the Year Durand Scott and All-ACC performer Kenny Kadji, as well as ACC All-tournament players Julian Gamble and Trey McKinney Jones.

All six seniors on the Sweet 16 team earned academic degrees from the University of Miami and one player was listed on the All-ACC Academic Team.

In Konkol's first year in Coral Gables, UM teetered on the edge of The Dance bubble, then went 1-1 in the ACC Tournament and ended up in the NIT, defeating Valparaiso, but falling to Minnesota, the eventual NIT Championship runner-up.

Konkol previously worked from 2002 through 2005 and 2007 through 2011 at George Mason with Larranaga. In the interim, he spent two years coaching at national power Hopkins High School in Minnesota under Ken Novak, Jr. - who was named 2011 ESPN RISE National Boy's Basketball Coach of the Year - and had a short stint on the coaching staff at North Dakota State.

He helped guide the Patriots to four-straight postseason appearances for the first time in Mason history - including NCAA berths in 2008 and 2011. In 2011, the team defeated Villanova to advance to the third round of the NCAA Tournament, earned a regular season CAA title and posted a school record-tying 27 wins.

In addition, Konkol was responsible for coordinating Mason's schedule, which was pivotal to the Patriots earning just their second at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2011 - and just the fifth at-large invitation for a CAA squad.

He served as Mason's scouting director from 2002-05 and helped recruit the top non-BCS recruiting class in 2009 according to ESPN.com. Additionally, he monitored the academic progress of the men's basketball student-athletes, graduating 20 of 22 student-athletes who completed their eligibility - with two more students set to graduate in May 2011. In both 2009 and 2010, the program was recognized by the NCAA with an Academic Progress Rate in the nation's top 10 percent.

Konkol previously worked on Buzz Peterson's staff as a student assistant for NIT champion Tulsa in 2000-01 and as a graduate administrative assistant at Tennessee in 2001-02, earning a master's degree in sport management.

A native of Amherst, Wis., Konkol is a 2000 graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology, with an emphasis in exercise management. He played three seasons of basketball for the Division III program - advancing to the national championship game in 2000. He received the team's Inspiration Award after his junior and senior seasons with the Blugolds, and was an honorary captain as a senior.

He spent his first two years, including one red-shirt season, at the University of Wisconsin at Platteville playing for former Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan who led the Badgers to the NCAA Championship game in 2015.

Konkol and his wife, Meagan, have two sons, Ethan and Ryan.

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