Lipscomb's Lennie Acuff is heading home to Alabama to take job at Samford

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Lennie Acuff, who coached Lipscomb to three straight 20-win seasons and an appearance in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, has been named successor to Bucky McMillan at Samford, athletic director Martin Newton announced Wednesday.

Acuff had winning records in five of his six seasons at Lipcomb, with this past season's team sweeping the Atlantic Sun regular-season and tournament championships before losing to Iowa State in March Madness and finishing 25-10.

The 60-year-old Acuff is a native of Huntsville, about 90 minutes northeast of Birmingham, and was head coach at Division II Alabama-Huntsville from 1997-2019. Lipscomb athletic director Philip Hutcheson said Acuff couldn't pass up the chance to return to his home state, where his adult children and extended family live.

“While we are disappointed that he is leaving, we understand the attraction of being close to one’s family and we wish him continued success in this new opportunity,” Hutcheson said.

McMillan left Samford on Saturday to take over at Texas A&M. The Bulldogs were 22-11 this past season with a loss to George Mason in the NIT. They were 99-52 in five seasons under McMillan and drew national notice in the 2024 NCAA Tournament when they narrowly lost to Kansas in the first round.

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