By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, MARCH 22, 2017 – USF found all it was looking for in the new head coach of the Bulls' men's basketball program.
In front of a packed Sun Dome Arena Club, USF System President Judy Genshaft and Director of Athletics Mark Harlan introduced Brian Gregory as the 10th head coach in USF men's basketball history on Wednesday.
“Coach Gregory brings championship experience to USF and a proven ability to identify, recruit and develop student-athletes who excel on the court and in the classroom,” Genshaft said.
Excitement about USF's new leading man continued when Harlan took the podium to talk about Gregory, who previously led programs at Georgia Tech (2011-16) and Dayton (2003-11).
“When I set out to find a new leader for our basketball program, I had very specific characteristics at the top of my list,” Harlan said. “An experienced head coach, high integrity, championship background, a program builder and a coach who develops and graduates players. Brian Gregory checks all these boxes and so much more.”
Here are five takeaways from Gregory's press conference that began in grand fashion with the Herd of Thunder band and USF Spirit Squads creating a true game day atmosphere:
Gregory Has an Impressive Coaching Background
Between Georgia Tech and Dayton, Gregory has led programs to six 20-win seasons in 13 seasons and he's two wins away from No. 250 in his head coaching career.
In his first head coaching stint, Gregory won 172 games at Dayton and led the Flyers to the NCAA tournament in his first season. It was one of five postseason appearances while he was at the helm of the Flyers. Gregory was named A-10 Coach of the Year in 2005 and helped Dayton capture the NIT championship in 2010.
After boosting Dayton to a No. 14 national ranking, Gregory won 76 more games at Georgia Tech and took the Yellow Jackets to the NIT quarterfinals in 2016.
Gregory spent last season as a consultant at Michigan State, where he got his coaching start as an assistant from 1990-96 and 1999-2003. Gregory was a part of the Spartans' 2000 NCAA championship team and was on the sideline for two trips to the Final Four, along with three Elite Eight Appearances.
“He has worked with Hall of Fame coaches. He has built the program at two universities and that will be an incredible asset as we move forward,” Harlan said.
Gregory Values the Bay Area, Sunshine State in Recruiting
Gregory previously taught valuable aspects of the game to 24 players that went on to play in the NBA and he knows more high-level talent isn't far from campus.
Under his watch, Gregory promised to fully utilize the Bay Area and the state of Florida in the recruiting process.
“There's too many good players, recruits, coming out of this area,” he said. “… We have to do a much better job of that and we're going to do it.”
Gregory has already gotten a head-start on building relationships with Bay Area coaches and he's opened the Muma Center doors to them to attend future USF practices.
“That's a way to get guys to understand who you are as a coach, so they feel comfortable and hopefully one day sending a player down that can make an impact here,” Gregory said.
The Right Culture Is Important
Just because a player has a ton of game doesn't exactly mean he's going to be the right fit for the program under Gregory.
Building blocks that will be a part of USF's culture include unselfishness, high energy, strong work ethic and sacrifice. That goes for future Bulls and current members of the team in an effort to make the Sun Dome “one of the toughest places to play” for opponents.
“I'm going to demand a first-class effort in everything they do as men, as students, and as players,” Gregory said. “My responsibility as the head coach is that they're surrounded in the first-class environment. We have that in place.”
As a point guard, Gregory learned many important team qualities while playing with Hall of Famer David Robinson on Navy's 1986 Elite Eight team and later at Oakland University. Gregory, an Academic All-American, earned two college degrees and he expects older Bulls to lead by example in the classroom.
“Every senior to play for him went on to graduate,” Harlan said. “He is committed to developing student-athletes on and off the court.”
Gregory Knows the Value of USF as a Whole
Building the Bulls back into a winner takes special players he'll be recruiting to attend a university where the sky is the limit.
Gregory spent a great deal of time verbally applauding USF's leadership, supporters, state-of-the-art facilities and rich tradition of academics. In his mind, they're all selling points when meeting with families of recruits.
“I firmly believe that the University of South Florida has so many of the characteristics you need to have in order to build a successful program,” he said.
Gregory later described USF as a life-changing place for student-athletes to attend, a place that shouldn't be taken for granted in the recruiting process.
“The experience of playing here, coupled with putting that diploma in your back pocket, you're in a whole different area than if you go anywhere else,” he said.
Gregory Is Better All-Around After Michigan State
Gregory got to work again with Tom Izzo this past season as a consultant at Michigan State, which went through some adversity of its own.
Izzo's Spartans lost two key pieces to the lineup to injury in the first week of the season and the team's second-leading scorer got hurt halfway through the schedule.
Gregory said he was glad he could be there to support Izzo, help with changes and use the season as a true learning experience for the future.
“To take a step back and really look at how I want to do things, and my vision for the next opportunity was great,” he said. “… I felt after my time at Georgia Tech like I'm a better man, a better husband, a better father and a better coach. I used this past year to improve in all of those areas.”
Now it's time to help the Bulls improve and he's embracing the challenge from Day 1.
“If we all take ownership and get together, we can get this thing done,” Gregory told his team and loyal supporters. “I'm excited about getting it done with all of you.”
About USF Athletics
USF Athletics sponsors 19 varsity men's and women's teams that compete in 11 different sports, 18 competing at the NCAA Division I level in the American Athletic Conference. The Bulls' athletic program celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2015, having started with a men's soccer contest in 1965. Nearly 500 student-athletes train and compete in the athletic district located on the east end of Tampa campus. The Bulls have claimed nine conference titles in the American Athletic Conference since 2013. Nine USF programs reached NCAA post-season competition in the 2015-16 and USF posted a program-record 86 percent Graduation Success Rate among student-athletes in the latest reporting.
– #GoBulls –
