Tom Folliard

Thomas Joseph Folliard (July 30, 1940 – September 28, 2001) was an American basketball coach who was the head men's basketball coach at Bryant College (1968–1978), Stonehill College (1978–1984), and the Florida Institute of Technology (1984–1991).

Early life A native of Washington, D.C., Folliard was the nephew of Washington Post reporter Edward T. Folliard. He was a member of the Friar team that won the 1961 National Invitation Tournament. After graduating, Folliard served for two years in the United States Army.

Coaching Bryant After spending one season as freshman coach at Bryant College, Folliard was promoted to head coach and athletic director in May 1968. Over ten seasons, he led the Bulldogs to an 174–88 and four postseason appearances, including its first NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament appearance, in 1978. His 174 wins remain the most in school history. He was inducted into the Bryant Hall of Fame in 1988.

Stonehill Folliard left Bryant to become the athletic director and basketball coach at Stonehill College. From 1978 to 1984, he led Stonehill to a 102–68 record, including three straight conference championships and NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament appearances. As athletic director, he played a leading role in the creation the Northeast-7 Conference.

Florida Tech From 1984 to 1991, Folliard was the men's basketball coach at the Florida Institute of Technology. He took over a team that went 12–54 and failed to win a Sunshine State Conference game over from 1981 to 1984 and led them to a winning season in 1987–88. In 1989–90, Florida Tech won a school-record 25 games, captured its first SSC regular season title, and made another NCAA tournament appearance. Folliard was inducted into the Florida Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

Personal life Folliard's first marriage ended in divorce. His second wife died in 1994. He had four children from his first marriage.

Later life and death After retiring from coaching, Folliard returned to Washington, D.C. He was the director of sales and marketing for Barclay Career School, director of marketing and admissions at the Technical Education Center in Rockville, and a senior loan officer for the Accubanc Mortgage Corporation. He was interred at Arlington National Cemetery.