Steve Kinder enters his tenth season at the helm of the Humboldt State men’s basketball program. With a resume that includes three NCAA Tournament appearances and three California Collegiate Athletic Association titles, Kinder has proven that he is one of the best coaches in the West Region.
Following up a hall of fame coach is never easy, but Kinder has left his own mark at his alma mater. He spent 22 years working with the legendary Tom Wood and took the reins from his mentor in 2010-11.
Kinder was tabbed Collegeinsider.com's recipient of the Clarence Gaines Award, which honors the NCAA Division II Coach of the Year after the 2010-11 campaign. He was also named National Association of Basketball Coaches West District Coach of the Year and California Collegiate Athletics Association Coach of the Year. Kinder has the program’s second-best, all-time winning percentage (.620) behind only Coach Tom Wood.
Humboldt State men’s basketball has compiled four 20-win seasons and advanced three times to the NCAA Tournament under Kinder. His Jacks have won 29 consecutive games against non-conference opponents in Lumberjack Arena entering the 2017-18
season.
Kinder guided the Green and Gold to a CCAA Tournament title in 2015-16, and the team advanced to face Western Oregon in the West Region Championships. HSU upset No. 23-ranked UC San Diego in the conference tournament en route to the program’s second conference tournament title.
The 2014-15 season featured a competitive Jacks’ team that went 22-8 overall and was nearly perfect (14-1) within Lumberjack Arena. HSU ended the regular season with six consecutive wins and defeated Cal State San Bernardino in the first round of the CCAA Tournament.
In his second season as head coach of the Green and Gold, Kinder directed the 2011-12 Humboldt State men's basketball to a 22-8 record, a CCAA Tournament title and an automatic berth in the NCAA Division II West Region Championships.
His first season as the Jacks’ skipper was a masterpiece. Kinder directed the Green and Gold to a 26-4 record and the NCAA postseason. The Jacks captured a CCAA regular season championship and ranked as high as third in the nation and No. 2 in the West Region poll.
Prior to taking the head coach position, Kinder served as one of Coach Wood’s top assistants. During his tenure as an assistant: he evaluated talent and recruited student-athletes, directed the Lumberjack Basketball Camp and shared practice and game plan duties. His hands-on approach helped make the Jacks regular participants in the NCAA postseason, including a West Region Championship in 2004.
He previously served as a graduate assistant coach for the Lumberjacks (1986-88) and was also an assistant basketball coach at U.S. International University.
Kinder earned his bachelor of science in physical education from HSU in 1985 and completed his masters at HSU in 1988. Prior to his hiring as an assistant coach at HSU, Kinder was the head coach at Oceanside High School in San Diego (1989-90).
As an athlete at Humboldt State, Kinder excelled in both basketball and track and field. He was a contributing starte and helped his 1985-85 team capture an NCAC Championship. His mark of 223’10” ranked second all-time in program history and was a national-qualifying mark.
During the past 31 years, Kinder helped recruit Lumberjack stars including Fred Hooks, Austin Nichols, Mark White, Jeremiah Ward, Cy Vandermeer, Grayson Moyer, Devin Peal, Kevin Johnson, Zac Tiedeman, Brian Morris, Randy Hunter, Austin Bryan, Malik Morgan, David Howard, Brandon Sperling, Kyle Baxter, Kevin Atkins, Allan Guei, Rocky Brown, Tyras Rattler, Davasyia Hagger, Justin Everett, and Jackson Strong.
He was inducted into the Escondido High School Hall of Fame on July 13, 2013.
Kinder is the father of three children, all graduated from college — Emily (Humboldt State University 2015), Madeleine (Sacramento State University 2018) and Claire (Long Beach State University 2020).
