Mike Krzyzewski could not stay away from March Madness for too long.
Krzyzewski, better known as Coach K, will be joining ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” as a regular contributor throughout this year’s NCAA Tournament. McAfee himself made the announcement on the show this week, noting that “we’re gonna have a nice little run here with the greatest of all-time.”
Coach K will be joining us throughout the entirety of March Madness..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 16, 2026
We can’t wait to chat with him #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/MRzX4tFG4g
Now 79 years old, Krzyzewski coached Duke University from 1980-2022. He led the Blue Devils to five national titles and 15 ACC Tournament victories and also amassed a Division I-record 1,202 coaching wins (combined between his time at Duke and his prior run as the head coach at Army).
Krzyzewski retired in 2022 after nearly five decades as a head coach and was succeeded at Duke by their current head coach Jon Scheyer. Also a three-time Naismith College Coach of the Year as well as a three-time Olympic gold medalist as the head coach of the United States men’s basketball team, Krzyzewski was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001 and into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Ever since retiring, Coach K notably had not joined any television networks. He had made a number of podcast and radio appearances however and recently went viral for his take on the NCAA Tournament expansion talks.
Now college basketball fans who miss Krzyzewski’s presence during March will be getting a healthy dose of him during this year’s tournament. Duke is one of the favorites too as the No. 1 seed in the East Region, and Coach K has already sounded plenty impressed by them.
