Murray State University Athletics
Cronin Begins Staff With Goggin, Grady
4/16/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
First-year Murray State men's basketball coach Mick Cronin put the first two pieces of his coaching staff in place Wednesday when he announced the hiring of Chris Goggin and Matt Grady.
Cronin, who was hired as Murray State's 13th head men's basketball coach on April 5, has worked with both first-year coaches while he was an assistant at the University of Louisville and the University of Cincinnati.
"I'm really excited about the staff and the way it's taking shape," said Cronin. "I've worked with Chris and Matt before and we're fortunate to have both of them here. They come from two winning programs."
Goggin, 31, spent five seasons at Cincinnati under head coach Bob Huggins prior to joining Cronin at MSU. While with the Bearcats, Goggin served most recently as administrative assistant, while also coordinating video, on-campus recruiting and Huggins' basketball camps.
"I worked with Chris for three years in Cincinnati and he has a tremendous work ethic and enjoys a great rapport with players," said Cronin. "He's someone I've always envisioned hiring when I got a head coaching job."
Goggin arrived in Cincinnati after a two-year stint at the University of Toledo where he was a student assistant. He graduated from Toledo in 1998 with a degree in athletic administration. A native of Detroit, Mich., Goggin played high school basketball at prestigious Renaissance High School.
"I was coming here for Mick Cronin, but when I got (to MSU) everything else was a bonus," said Goggin. "I was blown away with the facilities, the fan support and the commitment to the basketball program."
Grady, 24, comes to MSU after two seasons as a graduate assistant under Rick Pitino at the University of Louisville. In his two seasons with the Cardinals, Grady's main responsibility was coordinating all the film and video aspects of the program, which included advanced scouting of opponents, film exchange and assisting with the Rick Pitino Basketball Camps.
"Matt and I have worked together at Louisville and he knows our system and our style of play," said Cronin. "Matt's a young, energetic coach with a bright future. I feel very fortunate to have him come with me to Murray State."
Prior to his two-year stint at Louisville, Grady served as a student assistant for head coach Phil Martelli at Saint Joseph's University of the Atlantic 10. A native of Springfield, N.J., Grady played high school basketball at Saint Joseph's High School in Metuchen, N.J., where he was a teammate of former Duke all-American Jay Williams of the Chicago Bulls. He went on to play junior varsity basketball at Saint Joseph's University from 1997-2000. Grady graduated from Saint Joseph's in 2001 with a degree in finance.
"This is the opportunity of a lifetime that I really couldn't pass up," said Grady. "I sat down with Coach Pitino and Coach Cronin and they said I had to start climbing the coaching ladder. It's going to be a lot of work, but it's also going to be a lot of fun getting something new started here with Coach Cronin."
Cronin expects to hire one more assistant coach to round out his staff.
"I feel confident that we'll have one of the top assistants available to fill that position," the Racer coach said.
