Since officially leaving GW Monday, there has been a lot of speculation as to why Joe McKeown decided to make the move to Northwestern, ranging from looking for a new challenge to a better situation for his son Joey, who is autistic. McKeown told the Hatchet Tuesday night that all the reasons speculated about were accurate.

“I just felt like I had been at GW 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. There were also some excellent schools for my son in the area,” said McKeown, who added that he will encourage the seven incoming players he recruited to GW to honor their commitment.

The 52-year old also said the move had “nothing to do with GW” and that he is grateful to all the people who helped him when things were not going well, mentioning senior vice president for Student and Academic Support Services Robert Chernak and Director of Athletics Jack Kvancz by name. McKeown said that the challenge of rebuilding a program appealed to him and he saw a lot of potential in Northwestern, who is looking to devote more resources to women’s basketball.

“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.'”

When asked what his expectations were for his first season in Evanston, McKeown replied with the humor he has come to be known for. “I didn’t go there to lose,” he said.

Read the full article (updated today), the timeline of McKeown’s 19 years in Foggy Bottom, and Alex Byers’column.