New head coach for the University of Georgia basketball team, Tom Crean, has already made an impression on the community in Athens. So far he has both great wins and terrible losses on his Georgia resume but that has not taken away from the fact that he is doing a spectacular job with the program. The expectations for this season were practically nonexistent so he has a ton of room to work with. When the team is at its best, the defense looks fantastic and the offense flows through almost everyone.
Crean's collegiate coaching career began with two separate stints at Michigan State separated by four years at Western Kentucky. Both of these stops were as an associate coach. Crean's first official collegiate head coaching position came at Marquette University. He always had tremendous respect for the program there and was elated to the become a part of it. Crean was known as a fantastic recruiter and brought Marquette its first top 20 recruiting class in a long time. That recruiting proficiency is one of the reasons Georgia wanted to bring him on board.
Stegeman ColiseumPhoto by Griffin Callaghan
After Marquette, Crean moved on to Indiana which was a much larger conference and he rebuilt that program from the ground up after three consecutive losing seasons. A few seasons later, that same Indiana program found themselves make an appearance in the sweet 16. The UGA athletic department knows that success might not be immediate but they are hopeful that Crean can build this program into a powerhouse just like he did with the now successful Indiana Hoosiers.
A great feeling of optimism is coming from the basketball program now, more than it has in a long time. Crean is almost an exact opposite of the former coach, Mark Fox. Even for just the casual observer, the differences are quite obvious. Fox was never the personable guy that the players could joke around and have fun with. He was all business. That mentality is often good but especially with a young college team, it is not necessarily the approach that works as well. As a coach, you are expected to get the best out of your team. The technical approach of the game can be better for fundamentals but if the players are discouraged they are not going to give everything they have to win the games. Tom Crean has already become "one of the guys." On the sidelines during games he is cheering on his players, giving high fives, and even chest bumping his guys. This situation is becoming reminiscent of the culture of the Pittsburgh Steelers where they have head coach Mike Tomlin being one of the most encouraging coaches there is. Among all of the show, there is also success being demanded. That is the balance that the Bulldogs need to strike with this.
Stegeman ColiseumPhoto by Griffin Callaghan
Crean has been very active in trying to recruit the student body as well. He wants to garner the most support possible in order to encourage his team to show out. There was an even called "Stegmania" hosted by Crean before the start of the season that featured a dunk contest, a three-point contest, and many other activities designed to be entertaining for both the fans and players. Even during games, Crean can be seen interacting with the crowd in a way not often seen from coaches in this game.
Tom Crean was the right choice for the job. Now he must go out and build this program the way everyone knows he can.
