There seemed to be a collaborative agreement between DeChellis and Chambers that they were going to make sure all former assistants at BU and PSU left hanging by the transition would land a job. So it was my surprise to read Brian Siegrist’s twitter this morning as he broke the news that the former Navy Associate Head Coach, Eugene Burroughs, is the first to join Chambers’ staff. Interesting, although not surprising given their history.
Photo: Navysports.com
You can read Burroughs’ bio at NavySports.com, and in the official PSU release.
Burroughs will be one of 2 assistants, likely responsible for guard development. He certainly isn’t short on experience at this position. The former point guard played his college ball at Richmond University in the early 90s under Dick Tarrant. His first coaching job was a brief one at American University, where he was an assistant for 1 year. He became an assistant at Hofstra under Jay Wright from 1997-2000. When Wright took the job at Villanova, Burroughs moved on to Marist, wbere he was an assistant for 4 seasons. His most recent gig was at the Naval Academy under Billy Lange, the former Jay Wright protege that DeChellis is replacing. At Navy, he was elevated to associate head coach and served as the player development coach. When Lange left, he recommended Burroughs as his replacement. There were also rumors that Ed was trying to get Eugene to be Preston’s replacement before he took Navy’s job.
“Eugene can definitely recruit. He knows how to identify talent and brought in some terrific players for us,” Lange said.
“Eugene is an old-school basketball coach who is grounded in the fundamentals and believes very strong in defense,” said Lange, noting that Burroughs was a two-time All-Defensive pick in the Colonial Athletic Association at Richmond. “Eugene is very good at developing players, which is extremely critical here at Navy. He is a winner and a competitor and I think he is ready to become a head coach.”
Burroughs is a Philadelphia resident and another member of Jay Wright’s coaching tree. It would be safe to assume he has plenty of recruiting contacts throughout Maryland and Philadelphia. Chambers has known Burroughs for over 20 years, as they were both former teammates under Dan Dougherty at Episcopal Academy in the late 1980s.
Burroughs is the first of many pieces to the staff puzzle. Coach Chambers still needs an associate head coach, another assistant, a director of basketball operations, video coordinator (DJ Black’s disappearance from PSU roster likely he means he followed DeChellis to Navy) and it remains to be seen what will happen with Brad Pantall. Kurt Kanaskie and Dan Earl will likely be interviewed by Chambers, if they haven’t already, so there’s still a chance for them to stay here. Although I’d say it’s much less likely now for Earl, with Burroughs’ coaching the guards.
Eugene Burroughs seemingly is a great, logical hire. Ethically sound, fills a minority presence on the staff, east coast connections, good chemistry with the head coach. Maybe he can help lure Amile Jefferson to PSU?
