Chicago State University Announces Tracy Dildy as Head Men's Basketball Coach

CHICAGO, July 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Chicago State University (CSU) Athletics Director Sudie Davis announces the hiring of Chicago native Tracy Dildy as the new head coach of the University's men's basketball team.

Dildy becomes the 12th head coach in the program's 35-year history and brings a wealth of experience at the NCAA Division I level as a top recruiter and respected assistant coach.

"This is a bittersweet moment in my life to leave my Alma Mater, the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), where I developed my coaching career," said Dildy. "It's also a sweet moment to begin my head coaching career at CSU where President Watson is leading the charge towards a new and revitalized University. I'm also excited to work with Davis in helping shape the Athletics Department into a competitive program."

Dildy, a 20-year veteran in the collegiate game, comes to CSU after spending the past three seasons as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator for the men's basketball program at UIC. Davis believes Dildy "brings a much-needed recruiting legacy to CSU." Over the years, he has been responsible for the successful recruitment of future NBA players to his collegiate programs, including Eddy Curry, Quentin Richardson, Steven Hunter, Bobby Simmons, Paul McPherson, Bonzi Wells, and Sherrell Ford.

"Tracy is not only a great coach, but he is also very dedicated to the academic success of his student-athletes," said Davis. "This commitment is one of the primary reasons why he was our top pick for the job. He has the ability to lead our players to victory both on and off the court."

Before arriving at UIC in 2007, Dildy helped sign a highly-touted recruiting class during his lone season at the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) as an assistant coach under Mike Davis in 2006-07. He previously spent four seasons as an assistant coach at two Southeastern Conference (SEC) schools – the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) and Auburn University.

At Ole Miss, he helped assemble a nationally-ranked recruiting class for the 2005-06 season that was rated as high as third by numerous recruiting publications and earned a spot on Rivals.com's list of the Top 25 recruiters in the nation in June 2005.

While at Auburn, Dildy helped the Tigers post a 22-12 record during the 2002-03 season and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the 2003 NCAA Tournament, where they fell to eventual national champion Syracuse University and Carmelo Anthony (currently plays for the Denver Nuggets) by one point. In addition, he recruited current NBA player Marquis Daniels, who recently played in the NBA Finals with the Boston Celtics.

Dildy enjoyed success at DePaul from 1997-2002 where he worked as an assistant coach, the associate head coach, and served as the acting head coach in 2001. He helped the Blue Demons advance to the quarterfinals of the NIT in 2001 and reached the second round of the 2002 NCAA Tournament. Dildy spearheaded four successful recruiting classes for DePaul, which included the nation's top-ranked class in 2001 and the second-best class in the country in 1999.

During his three seasons as an assistant coach at Ball State from 1994-97, Dildy recruited future NBA player Bonzi Wells, a two-time Mid-American Conference Player of the Year and the MAC's all-time leading scorer, and helped the Cardinals reach the NCAA Tournament in 1995.

Dildy started his collegiate coaching career at UIC. As a student, Dildy played point guard and lettered for two seasons at UIC from 1987-89, finishing his collegiate career with the eighth-most assists (260) in the program's history.

Dildy earned a bachelor's degree in education from UIC in 1991. He was inducted into the UIC Athletics Hall of Fame in 1995, the State of Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997, and the Chicago Public League Hall of Fame in 1998.

With a degree in education, Dildy's obligation to students does not stop at sports. Davis states that Dildy shows a "very strong commitment to academia with his players and moving them forward to the next level whether it is the NBA or a professional career after college." Dildy himself says that "one of the most important aspects of life is education." He also went on to say that he will "provide a great experience for his student-athletes and encourage them to earn their degree."

"I am proud to join Chicago State University – a university that not only offers an excellent sports program, but also a strong academic curriculum that includes degree programs in a variety of fields such as pharmacy, nursing and education," said Dildy. "I believe a quality education is critical for future success, so while I work to ensure our student athletes have a great experience on the court, I will encourage them to excel in the classroom, too. CSU has a lot to offer its students and athletes and I am excited to begin a new era in CSU men's basketball history."  

Chicago State University was founded as a teacher training school in Blue Island, Illinois on September 2, 1867. Today, the University is a fully accredited public, urban institution located on 161-picturesque acres in a residential community on Chicago's South side. CSU is governed by a Board of Trustees appointed by the Governor of Illinois. The University's five colleges—Health Sciences, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Pharmacy—offer 36 undergraduate and 25 graduate and professional degree-granting programs. CSU also offers an interdisciplinary Honors College for students in all areas of study and has a Division of Continuing Education and Nontraditional Degree Programs that offers extension courses, distance learning and not-for-credit programs to the entire Chicago community.

SOURCE Chicago State University