Frank Harold Arnold (born October 1, 1934) is an American retired
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
coach. He served as the head basketball coach at
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
(BYU) from 1975 to 1983 and at the
University of Hawaii at Manoa
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
Pocatello High School
Pocatello High School is a four-year public high school in Pocatello, Idaho, United States. It is the oldest of the three traditional high schools of the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District and serves the southwest portion. The school colors are ...
in 1952. He then attended
Idaho State University
, mottoeng = "The truth will set you free"
, established =
, former_names = Academy of Idaho(1901–1915)Idaho Technical Institute(1915–1927) University of Idaho—Southern Branch(1927–1947)Idaho Stat ...
After graduating from Idaho State in 1956, Arnold became an assistant basketball coach at Payette High School in
Payette, Idaho
Payette is a city in and the county seat of Payette County, Idaho, United States. The population was 7,433 at the 2010 census.Brigham Young High School in Provo, Utah and enrolled in graduate school at the
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
College of Education
In the United States and Canada, a school of education (or college of education; ed school) is a division within a university that is devoted to scholarship in the field of education, which is an interdisciplinary branch of the social sciences en ...
, from which he earned a master's degree in education in 1960, then coached at BYU's
laboratory school
A laboratory school or demonstration school is an elementary or secondary school operated in association with a university, college, or other teacher education institution and used for the training of future teachers, educational experimentation, ...
until 1962.
In 1962, Arnold enrolled in a doctoral program at the
University of Oregon
The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...
and became a graduate assistant on the Oregon Ducks basketball team. In 1963, Arnold returned to Pocatello High to be head coach. The following year, Arnold moved to
Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Was ...
to be head coach at Clark Junior College, where he would stay for two seasons until 1966. Arnold then returned to the University of Oregon to be assistant coach under Steve Belko, who coached Arnold at Idaho State.
Arnold joined John Wooden's staff at
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
in 1971 to replace
Denny Crum
Denzel Edwin "Denny" Crum (born March 2, 1937) is an American former men's college basketball coach at the University of Louisville from 1971 to 2001, compiling a record. He guided the Cardinals to two NCAA championships (1980, 1986) and six Fi ...
, who left to take the head coaching position at
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
.
Arnold was hired to replace BYU coach Glenn Potter in 1975. Prior to coming to BYU, Arnold had been tutored by
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
legendary coach John Wooden, working as an assistant for the “Wizard of Westwood” during the school's glory years. Arnold was Wooden's assistant coach for three NCAA championships.
Arnold led the Cougars to a 137–94 (.593) record, won three
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Texas.
Due to mos ...
basketball titles and also coached them to three trips to NCAA tournament and another to the NIT. BYU made it to the NCAA final 8 with a team starring future NBA players
Danny Ainge
Daniel Ray Ainge ( ; born March 17, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and former professional baseball player who serves as an executive for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
A three-s ...
Fred Roberts
Frederick Clark Roberts (born August 14, 1960) is an American former basketball player who played power forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 13 seasons, a career spanning from 1983 to 1997, becoming a successful journeymen in ...
. Arnold struggled after the 1981 season and finished coaching at BYU in 1983.
Arnold accepted the head coaching position at the University of Hawaii in 1985 and coached at the school for two seasons and led the Rainbow Warriors to an 11–45 (.244) record. He resigned in 1987 and noted that his lack of success at the school was because "In order to win here you have to have J.C. transfers and that doesn't fit into my recruiting or coaching style". Arnold then was an assistant at
Arizona State
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
for two seasons.
Personal life
His son Gib Arnold also became a basketball coach and was most recently head coach at Hawaii from 2010 to 2014.