Updated Tuesday, June 10
Related: Timeline | 19 years in Foggy Bottom
Women’s basketball coach Joe McKeown, who holds the most wins of any coach in GW and A-10 women’s basketball history, resigned this June to take the same position at Northwestern University after 19 years in Foggy Bottom.
McKeown officially announced his decision June 9 in Evanston, Ill., the home of his new school. The move had been heavily rumored since June 7.
“I just felt like I had been at GW for 19 years and I was very fortunate to have a great run there, but Northwestern came after me and really emphasized the potential for women’s basketball there, being in the Big 10,” McKeown said in an interview.
Last year, McKeown extended his contract with GW through 2014, but Director of Athletics Jack Kvancz said there was no buyout involved in the move. The GW’s women’s team was ranked in the top 15 throughout the season last year and made the Sweet 16 for the second straight year.
“He did an outstanding job here, anyone can see that,” Kvancz said.
In a news release, University President Steven Knapp said that “no one has done more (than McKeown) to build the national athletic reputation of the George Washington University.”
The 52-year old Philadelphia native said the move had “nothing to do with GW” and said he will encourage the seven recruits who signed letters of intent with GW to honor their commitment.
In Northwestern, McKeown said he saw a situation with a lot of potential if he can cultivate a culture of winning – as he did in Foggy Bottom.
“Coaches are a unique breed,” McKeown said. “You look at the challenge there and the things we did at GW and think ‘Let’s see if I can do that somewhere else.'”
He added that he didn’t go to Northwestern to “finish last.”
Graduate Sarah-Jo Lawrence, one of the captains of last year’s team, said she was “shocked” to hear about McKeown’s move, but remembers the time with her coach fondly.
“When you think of GW women’s basketball, you think of Coach Mckeown,” she said. “He made the program what it is, but I think the move is going to fit him and his family well.”
Lawrence said McKeown’s sarcastic and funny personality off the court contrasts with his intensity during games and practices. He is known for his animated demeanor on the sideline, particularly for becoming red in the face after a referee makes an unfavorable call.
McKeown was always honest about his team’s play with the fans and media while at GW, even calling his team’s performance an “embarrassment” on occasion, such as after last year’s 25-point loss to Rutgers.
Noted for being a devoted family man, McKeown said that the Chicago area has excellent schools for his autistic son Joey – a significant factor in his move. McKeown has been public in his fight against autism throughout his career. Before signing with Northwestern, McKeown brought his family to the area to make sure he had their approval.
Kvancz said he will begin the search for a new coach immediately and hopes to finish it as soon as possible to limit disruption to the team’s 2008-2009 season. Assistant coach Mike Bozeman is rumored to be a possibility, as are former GW star and current Vanderbilt University assistant coach Lisa Cermingnano and University of Connecticut assistant coach Jamelle Elliott.
Whoever fills the position will inherit a program built entirely to its lofty stature during McKeown’s tenure, which he finished with a 441-154 record. By almost any standard, McKeown was the most successful basketball coach GW has ever had, leading the team to multiple top 10 rankings, three Sweet 16 appearances and an Elite 8 appearance in 1997.
McKeown came to a mediocre GW program in Sept. 1989 after three years as head coach of New Mexico State University. The Colonials were coming off a 9-19 season and had been mired in mediocrity for much of the previous decade. McKeown went 14-14 his first season, then 23-9 the following year to lay down the foundation for what would become a dynasty atop the A-10 standings.
The five-time A-10 Coach of the Year has won 509 games in his career, which puts him in 21st place among current Division I coaches.
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