USD Men's Basketball 2007-2008

bill

ilDREROS IVERSITY OF SANDIEGO

Head Coach First-Season Oregon, 1990

B years.

ill Grier enters his first year as head coach of the USD men's basketball program. He is USD's 11th head coach in program history and just the 4th coach since USD moved to the NCAA Division I ranks in 1979-80. Prior to USD, the 43-year-old Grier was at Gonzaga University the past sixteen

under Monson, the Bulldogs went 52-17, won back -to - back WCC titles, went to the 1998 NIT Sweet Sixteen and made it to the 1999 NCAA Elite Eight. In July, 1999,

Hired on March 26, 2007,Grier immediately went to work on putting his persona l stamp on Torero basketball. After as– sembling an outstanding staff, and getting acquainted with USD's returning players, he went to work on recruiting and putting together arg uably USD'stoughest schedule ever. He enters his first head coa ch ing job without a senior on the roster, but wil l have the services of four starters and eight players back from last year's ball club that finished 18-14 and advanced to the semi-final s of the WCC Tournament. "We were searching for a person with an overwhelming drive to succeed," said Ky Snyder, USD Executive Director of Athletics. "We fou nd that and much more in Bill Grier. The people I talked with across the country, people who I greatly respect, had noth ing but praise for Bill - a great person and fami ly man, a teacher who is great at individual workouts, a tireless worker, demanding on the court but also with suc– cess in the classroom, a great recruiter, thorough in his ap– proach, ready to become a head coach. It is with great plea– sure that I am able to introduce the man that fits all of these descriptions as our new head men's basketball coach." A high ly motivated, detailed and results oriented ba s– ketba ll coach with excellent communication and teaching skil ls, Grier played an integral role in Gonzaga's arrival on the nati onal scene. He began his career at Gonzaga in 1992 under head coach Dan Fitzgerald where he served as the re– stricted-earning s assistant for six years. He was elevated to a fu ll-time assistant for the 1997-98 season when Dan Monson took over the head coaching reigns. During his two seasons

when Monson ..______ accepted the

Minnesota job, Mark Few was made the head coach and Grier stayed where he was promoted to top assistant. Over the past eight years Gonzaga saw nothing but continued success with the teams compiling a 211 -52 record over that span.During this time the Zags won the WCC regular-season title seven times; the WCC Tournament title seven times; advanced to the NCAA Tournament eig ht times, including three trips to the Sweet Six– teen; and finished ranked in the top-10 of the final AP poll three times (2004-2006). Overall with Grier as an assistant coach, the Bulldogs have combined for an overall record of 381-126; won 11 regular-season WCC championships; won nine wee Tourna– ment titles (33-7 WCC tournament record); advanced to nine consecutive NCAA Tournaments, and ten overall, including four Sweet 16 appearances and the 1999 Elite Eight. The past ten years Grier was the "defensive coordinator" for the Bulldogs, as we ll as being respon sible for ten recruiting classes. He has developed the program into one known for its defense as much as it is for its offense.Since assuming the defensive role under former head coach Dan Monson, Gonzaga has led the WCC in field goal percentage defense six times, including the 3rd best mark in the nation in 2004. Responsib le for the past ten recruitin g classes, his 2007 class is the program's best yet,