Utah State names Ryan Odom as head men’s basketball coach
LOGAN, Utah (BVM) – It took just a week for Utah State University to find its next head men’s basketball coach after Craig Smith left for the University of Utah.
Ryan Odom was announced as the Aggies’ 20th head coach on Monday and brings 24 years of collegiate coaching experience to Logan.
“We are beyond excited to announce Ryan Odom as Utah State’s new men’s basketball head coach,” Utah State Director of Athletics John Hartwell said in a statement. “We had great interest from many qualified candidates and Ryan quickly distinguished himself as the clear choice. Ryan has a proven track record of accomplishments with his student-athletes, both in the classroom and on the court, and we are confident he will continue to elevate the success of our Aggie basketball program.”
Odom has seven years of head coaching experience and a 126-81 (.609) record over that span. His most recent stint was at the University of Maryland, Baltimore Country (UMBC) where he was the head coach for five years and led the Retrievers to a 97-70 (.573) record.
UMBC became the first-ever 16-seed to win a first-round game in the 2018 NCAA Tournament when it beat top overall seed Virginia. Odom coached three of the top four most-winningest teams in school history and set a program record by winning 20-plus games in three consecutive seasons, including a school-record 25 wins during the 2017-18 season.
“My family and I are thrilled to be joining Utah State University and the Cache Valley community,” Odom said in a statement. “With President (Noelle) Cockett and Vice President John Hartwell, there is an outstanding foundation and great leadership, and I can’t tell you how excited we are to experience ‘The HURD,’ and build upon the storied history and recent success of Aggie basketball.”
Odom earned the 2017 Joe B. Hall Award, which is presented annually to the top first-year head coach in Division I. Prior to UMBC, Odom was the head coach at Lenoir-Rhyne after assistant coaching stints at Charlotte, Virginia Tech, American, UNC Asheville and Furman.
The Aggies and Odom will be without the services of the team’s best player from last season, Neemias Queta, who announced last week that he will forgo his senior season and enter the NBA Draft. Queta led the team in points, rebounds, blocks and was selected as the Mountain West Player of the Year by members of the media.
Odom will look to improve a Utah State program that just finished 20-9 and made its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
