Larry Eustachy

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Larry Eustachy bigraphy, stories - American basketball player-coach

Larry Eustachy : biography

December 1, 1955 –

Larry Eustachy (born December 1, 1955 in Alameda, California) is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach of Colorado State University’s men’s basketball team. He was reported as Colorado State’s new head coach on April 11, 2012. He had previously been head coach of the men’s basketball teams at the Idaho (1990–1993), Utah State (1993–1998) and Iowa State (1998–2003), and the University of Southern Mississippi (2004–2012). Eustachy won the AP National Coach of the Year after leading Iowa State to the Elite Eight in the 2000 NCAA Tournament.

Coaching career

Idaho

Eustachy was the head coach at Idaho from 1990 through 1993. He led the Vandals to the 1993 Big Sky regular season championship.

Utah State

He took over the reins in Logan in 1993 and had a very successful 5 year stretch at the Utah State University.

Iowa State

Eustachy was named head coach at Iowa State in 1998 after Tim Floyd resigned to become head coach of the Chicago Bulls. Following a lackluster first season, Eustachy led the Cyclones to the best season in school history in 1999-2000. The Cyclones won a school record 32 games and came within one game of the Final Four. After leading the Cyclones to a second straight Big 12 Conference title in 2001, Eustachy signed a contract extension that, with incentives, made him the highest-paid state employee in Iowa.

On April 28, 2003; The Des Moines Register carried a picture of Eustachy kissing several young women and holding a beer at a party near the University of Missouri’s campus just hours after the Tigers defeated Eustachy’s Cyclones on January 22. The Register also reported that Eustachy had been seen at a fraternity party at Kansas State hours after his team lost to the Wildcats. On April 30, athletic director Bruce Van De Velde suspended Eustachy with pay and recommended that he be fired for violating a morals clause in his contract. Eustachy held a press conference in which he apologized for his behavior and admitted he’d recently begun rehab treatment for alcoholism.http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/01/sports/college-basketball-iowa-st-coach-faces-firing-for-behavior.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/01/sports/college-basketball-iowa-st-coach-faces-firing-for-behavior.html

Eustachy initially indicated he would contest the suspension. Instead, on May 6, he announced his resignation.http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/06/sports/college-basketball-iowa-state-s-eustachy-steps-down-as-coach.html

Southern Mississippi

After a year out of coaching, Eustachy was hired at Southern Miss.

On January 9, 2008 he took a leave of absence to be with his ailing mother. Following the 2008-09 season, he returned his $25,000 bonus from the university, saying that after a disappointing season, he did not feel as though he had earned it. SI.com, March 23, 2009 In 2011 his Southern Mississippi team turned down invites to the CBI and CIT. On February 25, 2012 Eustachy recorded his 400th victory.http://www.southernmiss.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/022512aaa.html

He is 427-266 overall through the end of the 2012-13 regular season.

Colorado State

On April 12, 2012 Eustachy left Southern Miss and was introduced as the 19th head basketball coach in Colorado State history, replacing Tim Miles who had left for Nebraska.

Eustachy inherited a senior-laden 2012-13 roster which featured four returning starters and Minnesota-transfer Colton Iverson. The Rams were coming off a 20-12 season in which they made the NCAA Tournament and lost to Murray State in the second round. CSU greatly improved in rebounding and defensively, leading to an historic season for the program. CSU cracked the top 25 rankings for the first time since 1954 during the season. At 11-5 the Rams finished 2nd in the Mountain West, their highest finish in program history. For the second straight year the Rams earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, this time as an 8 seed against, ironically, Missouri. The Rams defeated the Tigers 84-72 to give Eustachy his first NCAA Tournament win since the Elite 8 run at Iowa State. It was CSU’s first tournament win since 1989 and a program record 26th win. CSU lost in the third round to top-seed Louisville, ending the season 26-9.

Head coaching record by year