Dennis Gates describes emotions of coaching against his brother Armon

Missouri‘s 82-58 win over Oklahoma on Wednesday night was more than just another mid-week matchup in the SEC for Tigers head coach Dennis Gates.

Instead, it was a game that featured a coaching matchup between two brothers — the Missouri head coach and his younger brother, Sooners assistant Armon Gates. After the game, Dennis spoke to the career his brother has put together, and what he expects from him in the near future.

“I’m so proud of him,” Dennis Gates said. “It was an unbelievable atmosphere to see. You guys can see in the back, my family’s back there. They’ve got half Oklahoma, half Missouri shirts on. I just thought, you know, the energy — I spent time with them in the office before the game. He came up after shoot around. I’m just proud of what he’s been able to do as an assistant coach, and he doesn’t get the credit he deserves.

“I think he’s a head coach — a soon to be head coach in the next couple years. Ultimately, he’s been behind some unbelievable and successful programs. Again, helped Porter Moser on day one at Loyola [Chicago], helped Chris Collins day one at Northwestern and being able to achieve the success that they have is well noted. He’ll run [his own] program at some point.”

Armon Gates has been on Porter Moser’s staff since before the 2023-24 season. That came after the two worked together at Loyola Chicago from 2011-2013. Moser has said in the past that Armon Gates is someone who brings an unrivaled amount of passion and energy to any program he’s apart of.

Before he was hired by Moser, Gates worked under Dana Altman at Oregon during the 2022-23 season. He was also an assistant at Nebraska, and before that, Northwestern, TCU, and his alma mater, Kent State.

For his older brother, Dennis Gates seems to be settling into his role at the helm of the Missouri program. His Tigers are ranked No. 21 in the latest AP Top 25 poll and are 18-6 overall, including 7-4 in SEC play which is better than No. 5 Tennessee (7-5) and No. 15 Kentucky (6-5), who are ranked ahead of them nationally.

Next up for the Tigers is a road trip to Georgia, who has found itself on a skid as of late and have lost each of their last two matchups. Tip-off for Saturday’s SEC showdown is set for 3:30 p.m. ET live on the SEC Network.