heath owns three ncaa appearances in six seasons as head coach
Heath, 42, arrives at USF after
serving as head coach at the
University of Arkansas for each
of the previous five seasons. While with the Razorbacks, Heath
guided the program to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances
(2006, 2007) and an overall record of 82-71. UA posted 20-win
campaigns in each of the previous two seasons and 2006-07 was
highlighted by a run to the championship game of the
Southeastern Conference Tournament and subsequent participation
in the NCAA’s.
“I couldn’t be more pleased to
introduce Stan Heath as our men’s head basketball coach,”
Woolard said. “He has had tremendous success at every level of
college basketball. During his five years as an assistant at
Michigan State, their team went to the NIT, Sweet 16, Final Four
twice, and won a National Championship.
“During his one season at Kent State, he led what many people consider to be a mid-major school
to a 30-6 record and an Elite Eight appearance,” Woolard added.
“During his five years as a head coach at Arkansas, his
recruiting classes were ranked in the top 15-or-better three
times. Additionally, the last two seasons his team won
20-or-more games, made the NCAA Tournament, and played against
Florida in the SEC Tournament championship game.”
An outstanding recruiter
throughout his career, Heath’s signing classes have gained
national recognition in recent years. National media outlets
ranked his efforts among the top 15 in the country in 2003, 2004
and 2006. In his six years (Arkansas
and Kent State University) as a head coach, he has directed a
total of six players to all-league accolades on eight occasions
and his rosters have featured a pair of freshman All-Americans,
two conference defensive players of the year and one sixth man
of the year.
“Today, we are here to
celebrate the beginning of a new era for the USF men’s
basketball program, the hiring of Stan Heath,” University
President Dr. Judy Genshaft said. “The entire University
community is excited about the selection of coach Heath as he
has encountered tremendous success already in his career and we
look forward to that continuing in the future.
“I am extremely pleased with
the results of Athletic Director Woolard’s search and know that
he selected the best fit possible for our student-athletes and
the University,” Genshaft added.
“On behalf of the trustees,
students, faculty, staff, and supporters, it is my pleasure to
officially welcome coach Heath, his wife Ramona and their two
sons, Jordan and Josh to the USF family.”
Prior to
Arkansas, Heath guided Kent
State to a record-setting 2001-02 campaign in his first year as
a head coach at the collegiate level. The Golden Flashes
claimed the Mid-American Conference regular season and
tournament titles en route to a 30-6 record and an appearance in
the Elite Eight. KSU set a league record for wins that year,
won 21 games in a row and defeated three nationally ranked
opponents (No. 20 Oklahoma St., No. 8 Alabama, No. 9 Pittsburgh)
during its historic postseason run.
While an assistant coach for
five seasons (1996-97 – 2000-01) under Tom Izzo at Michigan
State, Heath helped the Spartans develop into one of the top
programs in all of college basketball. During his tenure, MSU
advanced to the Final Four on three occasions (1999, 2000 and
2001), highlighted by the national championship in 2000. The
Spartans compiled an overall record of 132-37 during his stay in
Lansing and also made
one more Sweet Sixteen (1998) trip and participated in the
National Invitation Tournament (1997).
The
Detroit native has also made
collegiate assistant coaching stops at Bowling Green State
University (1994-95 – 1995-96), Wayne State University (1991-92
– 1993-94), Albion College (1989-90 – 1990-91) and Hillsdale
College (1988-89). He began his coaching career at the prep
level, working for one season (1987-88) at Lincoln High School
in Ypsilanti, Mich.
“I am excited about the
opportunity and partnership available at USF and I look forward
to moving the program forward,” Heath said. “It’s going to take
a lot of work and commitment and our coaches and players will
bring an exciting and fast brand of basketball to the Sun Dome.
“We intend to not only make
NCAA Tournament appearances, but also win games in the
postseason as we develop our players both academically and
athletically,” Heath added.
A three-year letterwinner
(1984-85 – 1986-87) at
Eastern Michigan University, Heath earned his bachelor’s degree
in social science in 1988. He went on to complete his master’s
work in sports administration in 1993 at Wayne State University.
Heath is married to the former
Ramona Webb and the couple has two sons; Jordan (14) and Joshua
(12).
Stan Heath Press
conference quotes:
University President
Dr. Judy Genshaft
"Today, we are here to celebrate the
beginning of a new era for the USF men's basketball program, the hiring
of Stan Heath. The entire University community is excited about the
selection of coach Heath as he has encountered tremendous success
already in his career and we look forward to that continuing in the
future.
"I am extremely pleased with the
results of Athletic Director Woolard's search and know that he selected
the best fit possible for our student-athletes and the University.
"On behalf of the trustees, students,
faculty, staff, and supporters, it is my pleasure to officially welcome
coach Heath, his wife Ramona and their two sons, Jordan and Josh to the
USF family."
Director of
Athletics Doug Woolard
"I couldn't be more pleased to
introduce Stan Heath as our men's head basketball coach. He has had
tremendous success at every level of college basketball. During his
five years as an assistant at Michigan State, their team went to the
NIT, Sweet 16, Final Four twice, and won a National Championship.
"During his one season at Kent State,
he led what many people consider to be a mid-major school to a 30-6
record and an Elite Eight appearance. During his five years as a head
coach at Arkansas, his recruiting classes were ranked in the top
15-or-better three times. Additionally, the last two seasons his team
won 20-or-more games, made the NCAA Tournament, and played against
Florida in the SEC Tournament championship game."
Head Men’s
Basketball Coach Stan Heath
"I'm humbled. I'm really excited to be
here. I want to thank my family. You go through highs and lows in this
profession and you cry both ways - you cry when you're sad and you cry
when you're happy and believe me, we're crying happy right now."
"I want to thank our president (Dr.
Judy Genshaft). I had a brief moment to speak with her on the phone
during this process and she excited me. She had me fired up. Lee Roy Selmon, a terrific person, I had a chance to meet him, great character.
I was a big fan of his back when he was playing.
"A Bull, that's a Bull right there -
this guy (Doug Woolard) is relentless and he works hard and he's
tireless. He could have easily, easily said, 'you know what, I've gone
through this, the doors are kind of closed,' but he didn't and I'm
appreciative that he kept that window open, because that's all I want.
I just want that window busted down. Just crack that door a little bit,
because I'm trying to go through. I'm really excited to be here. This
is a great opportunity for me. I just see this as a sleeping giant. I
woke up this morning and said "wow, I'm here? I get to work here?" This
is just a great, exciting feeling for me."
"We're going to win. And we're going
to win real soon, a lot sooner than a lot of people think. For some
people, they look at things differently. For me, I see just great
possibilities. We're going to work hard. Our players, I know they're
going to work hard. They're going to lay the foundation. I'm expecting
some things this season. We want to get some things done this season
and we can do that. This is a team effort. It's a coaching staff, its
players, its community, its students-we've got to get those students
here. We've got to get them here and we've got to make this, when
winter comes, the thing to do, the thing that's happening during those
winter months. It's a goal of mine to put a great product out there.
To put out a team that's exciting, a team that's going to play hard, a
team that's going to play pressure basketball. What does that mean? It
means we're going to run. What does that mean? It means we're going to
get in your face and guard you. What does that mean? It means we're
going to attack you all the time. That's how we want to play."
"We're going to hit the road
recruiting. This is going to be a whirlwind for me, these next couple
weeks, while we still have this period to work, because we want to sign
a few more guys and get some help in here. We want to make sure that I
get a chance to meet as many people as I can, but right now you're
probably going to be second on my list to recruiting, I can tell you
that. Again, I'm excited to be here, I think this is a great
opportunity and I'm definitely going to make the most of it."
On emotions from
being let go at Arkansas a week ago:
"Well, when you're in this profession,
you go through ups and downs all the time. Obviously, it's a
disappointment when that happens. I think when that happens to anybody
in life, you get really disappointed about it and you look inward at
what happened and why. But my primary concern at that time was my
family. As a coach, you kind of know what you're getting into a little
bit. Your kids and your family don't quite know those things, so I
became very protective of them, I became very concerned about the future
of the guys that I recruited and that I coached that were left in the
program. So those were my reactions and at the same time I knew that it
was time to move forward. So once that decision was made, it was time
to move forward. I wanted to look at options. One thing about this
situation, I didn't have to coach. I really didn't, but it's in my
blood to coach and I'm really excited about being here and so you go
from those extremes and this is an extreme high for me, personally. And
I can't tell you how excited my wife and my kids are right now."
On what made USF the
right fit:
"Well, I'm a feel guy. I just go by
what's in my head and how I connect with people, and I just really
connected with Doug, to be honest with you. It really was a great
connection, I felt his passion, I felt his enthusiasm to be here and for
me it was wow, something must really be going well here. Our talks were
great. I had been here in 1999. We played a tournament here when I was
an assistant coach, so I had a general feel for the environment here and
I knew quite a few people that had awareness of South Florida, the
diversity, the community, the basketball program, and it just seemed
like the more things we talked about, the more information that I kept
getting, momentum just kept building. And to me, it just seemed like a
great fit, personally, and for my family."
On strengths in directing USF:
"I think in this day and age, a coach
has to wear a lot of different hats and you've got to be versatile.
You've got to be able to multi-task. The best thing I can do right now
is connect with these guys (current players) who are very important to
me, very important to our program and make sure that we play at the
highest possible level -- that we can play at every night and that's
something I'm going to work very hard at and I believe that's something
these guys right here are going to work very hard at as well."
On discussions about
facilities and amenities:
"Doug and I, let's see, we spent
Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday together. I spent more time with
him than my wife and I really expected to be with my wife there in
Atlanta. So we talked about all the different things. We talked about
the program, the facilities, the community, the academic side, the
importance of being a student-athlete here. We went through an array; I
mean it was thorough in both ways. He wanted to find out as much as he
could about me. I wanted to find out as much as I could about this
University and the basketball program and all my questions were
answered. I feel very good about it and I think he felt the same way as
well."