Miami Student

Issue date: 11/30/07 Section: Sports

Miami basketball Head Coach Charlie Coles is just one of many coaches at MU who was once an athlete for the Red and White.

When it comes to Miami University athletics, keeping the family together is extremely important, according to Athletic Director Brad Bates. While the Miami family may not be linked by DNA, they are connected by their own experiences as former RedHawk athletes.

"The Miami family means the family of excellence," Bates said. "Whenever you can take advantage of that excellence and bring back Miami alum, their passion towards the institution is greater on every level."

Many colleges and universities throughout the nation hire former students to coach their sports programs, according to Bates, and many use those opportunities to start their coaching careers in a familiar setting.

A recent alumni hire in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) will be facing Miami Saturday: Central Michigan University's Butch Jones was named head coach of the CMU football program in January. Jones returned to his alma mater in 1995 as the running back coach and moved his way up the ranks.

Currently, the Athletic Department employs 17 Miami alumni coaching in football, women's and men's basketball, synchronized skating, ice hockey, swimming and volleyball. Perhaps one of the most prominent and successful Miami alumni is men's basketball Head Coach Charlie Coles, currently in his 11th season with the 'Hawks.

Under Coles, Miami amassed a league-best five straight Mid-American Conference Championship game appearances from 1997-2001; three MAC regular-season crowns in 1997, 1999 and 2005; and the MAC tournament title in 1997 and 2007. In 2005 Coles was honored as the MAC Coach of the Year.

However, his stellar accomplishments and records were not achieved entirely on his own. When searching for an assistant coach in 1998, Coles turned to someone he once mentored on and off the basketball court. That someone was Miami graduate and athlete, Jermaine Henderson, who had played under Coles while at Miami.

"I noticed his leadership qualities my first year coaching at Miami," Coles said. "He was our designated speaker for the team, he dressed nicely, he was always early and he was a good student. That's hard to find."

Coles refused to let a good thing get away, regardless of whether it was what Henderson actually wanted after he graduated. Despite his age and lack of experience, Coles took a chance on Henderson and brought him on his staff.

Continued...

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