Stephen F. Austin On April 30, 2013, Underwood was hired as head coach of
Stephen F. Austin. He replaced
Danny Kaspar, who left after 13 seasons to become the head coach of
Texas State. According to athletic director Robert Hill, "Brad Underwood brings years of experience to SFA and has coached at the highest levels of Division I basketball. All of this plus his knowledge of the game and ability to recruit makes him the perfect hire for our men's basketball program. He has great plans on how we can make this program even better." He was named Southland Coach of the Year. SFA was awarded the Southland Conference automatic berth to the
2014 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament where they upset
VCU in the round of 64, before eventually falling to
UCLA. Underwood's third season saw him win the Southland Conference tournament again and an automatic bid to the
NCAA tournament as a 14 seed. He then led the Lumberjacks to an upset victory over the third-seeded
West Virginia Mountaineers coached by
Bob Huggins, with whom he worked as an assistant at Kansas State. Stephen F. Austin had a 75–70 lead over sixth-seeded
Notre Dame with two minutes to play in the second round before the Irish scored six straight points and won on a tip-in with 1.2 seconds left.
Oklahoma State On March 21, 2016, Underwood was hired as head coach of
Oklahoma State. He replaced
Travis Ford, who was fired after a 12–20 regular-season record. He led the Cowboys to a 20–13 record in his only season as head coach, ending with a loss to
Michigan on March 17, 2017, in the
NCAA tournament. In 2020, Oklahoma State's basketball program received penalties from the NCAA—including a ban on postseason play in 2020–21—as punishment for violations committed during Underwood's tenure.
University of Illinois On March 18, 2017, Underwood was hired as head coach of
Illinois, replacing
John Groce. Underwood signed a six-year contract through 2023 worth $18 million that includes two retention bonuses. On March 2, 2020 it was announced that Underwood and his assistants had received extensions. Underwood's contract was extended through the 2025-26 season and moved his base salary to $3.4 million, which ranks in the upper quartile of the
Big Ten Conference. Illinois finished the 2020–21 regular season 16–4 in Big Ten play and 23–6 overall. Illinois finished in second place in the Big Ten to Michigan, who finished with a higher winning percentage at 14–3. In the Big Ten tournament, Illinois first played Rutgers, winning 90–68. Illinois moved on to the semifinals against Iowa, winning 82–71. In the finals, Illinois beat Ohio State, 91–88 in overtime. Underwood led the Illini to their first Big Ten tournament title since 2005. Illinois secured a number one seed in the Midwest region of the 2021 NCAA men's basketball tournament. Their first matchup was against 16 seed Drexel; the Fighting Illini defeated the Drexel Dragons 78–49. In their second matchup, the Illini fell to the 8th-seeded Loyola (Chicago) Ramblers, 71–58. Following the end of the season, Underwood received a one-year contract extension, keeping him through 2027. The following season (2021-22), the Illini were co-champions of the Big Ten with a 15–5 record. Illinois again made the NCAA Tournament where they beat Chattanooga in the first round before losing to Houston in the second round. Following the end of the season, Underwood received a one-year contract extension, keeping him through 2028. In the 2022-23 season, the Illini again made the NCAA Tournament, where they lost in the first round to Arkansas. The Illini had one of their best seasons in history in 2023–24. With a 14–6 record, the Illini finished second in the Big Ten and proceeded to win the Big Ten Tournament against Wisconsin. Winning the Big Ten Tournament triggered an automatic contract extension, keeping Underwood under contract through the 2029-30 season. Following this, the Illini made the NCAA Tournament as a 3 seed and went on to beat Morehead State, Duquesne, and Iowa State before losing to eventual champion Connecticut. In the 2024–25 season, the Illini again qualified for the NCAA Tournament, beating Xavier in the first round before losing to Kentucky. Following the end of the season, Underwood received a contract extension, with his contract now running through the 2030–31 season. For the 2025–26 season, the Illini qualified for the NCAA Tournament as a 3 seed, defeating Penn, VCU, Houston, and Iowa in the South Regional to return to the Final Four for the first time since the 2005 season. ==Head coaching record==