#Valpo head basketball coach free#

Homer Drew was rehired as head coach for Valparaiso's men's basketball team in August 2003, and led the Crusaders back to the NCAA tournament in 2004. Drew is nominated to become one of Valparaiso University's 150 Most Influential Persons in the university's history.įor the 2002–03 season, Drew's son Scott took the head coach position, but then left after one year to become the head coach at Baylor. This made him the winningest coach in Valpo history, with a 236–184 record there. As of February 21, 2002, Drew had become one of only 19 active Division I coaches to earn his 500th career victory and mounted a 26-season career record of 505–306, a winning percentage of 62.3. However, the Crusaders finally fell to 8-seeded University of Rhode Island by a score of 74–68-the deepest run a Mid-Continent/Summit League team made in the NCAA Tournament since Cleveland State's run in 1986.Īfter coaching for another four seasons, Drew retired at the end of the 2001–02 season and took a post as Special Assistant to the President for University Advancement. The Crusaders proceeded to defeat 12-seeded Florida State University 83–77 in overtime. Then, as time expired, Bryce released a 23-foot three-point shot, clinching the Crusaders' 70–69 upset and advancing them in the tournament. Jamie Sykes inbounded a long throw to Bill Jenkins, who drew two defenders and quickly passed the ball to Drew's son, Bryce Drew. On the inbound, Drew called the play known as Pacer. After he missed both shots, the Crusaders came up with possession-94 feet from their basket, and with only 2.5 seconds remaining in the game.

#Valpo head basketball coach free#

Valparaiso was down 69–67 with 4.1 seconds remaining in the game, and Mississippi's Ansu Sesay at the free throw line. In the Midwest Region, 13-seed Valparaiso was facing 4-seed Ole Miss in the first round. The pinnacle of Drew's coaching career came during the 1998 NCAA Tournament. This continuous success helped Drew achieve conference Coach of the Year honors three consecutive seasons, from 1993 to 1996.ĭrew led the Crusaders to five consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1995 to 2000-the Crusaders' first postseason appearances as a Division I team. In 1999–2000, he led the Crusaders to their sixth consecutive conference tournament title, and in 2000–01 to another regular season title. Valpo was a model of consistency under Drew, winning both the Mid-Continent Conference regular season and tournament titles five straight seasons from 1994 to 1999, and again in the 2001–02 season. In 1988, Drew moved to Valparaiso University. Drew then earned a Doctorate in educational administration from Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan in 1983.

Louis, Missouri, he achieved his Bachelor of Arts in physical education and social studies at William Jewell College in 1966 before completing his Master of Arts in education at Washington University in St. Both Scott and Bryce were also head coaches at Valparaiso, with Scott leading the Crusader program in 2002–03 and Bryce from 2011 to 2016.Ī native of St. Scott is the coach of the Baylor Bears men's basketball team, where he has served as head coach since 2003, while Bryce is the head coach at Grand Canyon University. He amassed 371 coaching victories with the Crusaders, eight conference regular-season titles, eight conference tournament titles, nine postseason appearances, three postseason victories, faced the number one team in the nation in six of his last seven years as head coach, while also sending 32 players to the pros and 80 players into teaching or coaching.ĭrew's sons, Scott Drew and Bryce Drew, have both been coaches at the Division I level. Drew was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.ĭrew made 10 National Tournament appearances and seven NCAA Tournament appearances in his career.ĭrew put Valparaiso and its men's basketball program on the map over the course of his 22 years at the helm of the Crusaders with his “Building a Tradition” philosophy, which reached new heights in 1998 as Valparaiso advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. He retired from college basketball in 2011 with 640 career wins, which ranked him sixth amongst all Division I coaches at the time of his retirement. (born September 29, 1944) is an American former college basketball coach and administrator who coached at Washington State, LSU, Bethel College, Indiana-South Bend, and Valparaiso.