| To contact the coaches: Head Coach Jimmy Collins - (312) 996-8690 Asst. Coaches: Dick Nagy (312) 996-8335, rnagy@uic.edu Mark Coomes (312) 996-8336, mcoomes@uic.edu Gene Cross (312) 996-5010, cross70@uic.edu Andrew Haring (312) 413-5303, aharing@uic.edu |
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HEAD COACH
Jimmy Collins
After struggling through some growing pains last season with 11 freshmen and sophomores and a total of 10 new faces on the roster, third-year skipper at the University of Illinois at Chicago Jimmy Collins is excited about the eight letterwinners he has returning and extremely optimistic about the group of recruits that he and his staff have brought in. Last year, Collins' young squad relied on senior and All-MCC Second Team honoree Bryant Notree for a majority of its scoring and rebounding production which took its toll on the squad as the season wore on. The inexperienced Flames lacked leadership at the point and struggled to gel as a unit. This year, however, Collins is looking for a more balanced attack and he feels that his 1999-2000 crew possesses the skill, talent and positive attitude to work its way back into the cream of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference crop. Joel Bullock returns to handle the point guard duties while guard Jordan Kardos, forward Ian Hanavan and center Thor Solverson, all starters last year, are back for Collins as well. In 1997-98, Collins led the Flames to the most successful season in the school's history. UIC made its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance as it received an at-large bid, it racked up a school-record matching 22 wins and earned a share of the MCC regular-season title while Mark Miller was honored as the 1998 MCC Player of the Year. Additionally, the Flames knocked off Big Ten co-champs Michigan State, Missouri Valley champions Illinois State and MCC co-champs Detroit. UIC reached as high as 19th in the various RPI ratings while receiving the most votes in school history in the USA Today/Coaches Poll and the Associated Press' Top 25 poll. Following the phenomenal year, Collins garnered numerous awards and honors. In addition to being selected as the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association NCAA Division I "Coach of the Year" and the Referee's Association of Chicago "Coach of the Year," Collins was also honored by the Ed Kelly Sports Program, Inc. with a 1998 Giant Award, which recognizes an individual not only for their professional accomplishments, but also for the example they have set for others following in their footsteps. Collins was also inducted into the Urban Sports Hall of Fame of Syracuse and he was also selected as a Father of the Year by Chicago's Father's Day Council. In his first season, the Flames began 1-8 before Collins righted the ship and directed them to a 14-6 record the remainder of the season. After an 11-5 conference finish and tying for second place with Detroit, UIC reached the championship game of the 1997 MCC Tournament before falling to Butler by a single point, 69-68. For his efforts, Collins became the first UIC coach in over 13 years to garner coach of the year honors, sharing the MCC Co-Coach of the Year recognition with Butler's Barry Collier.
Collins, 50, came to UIC from the University of Illinois' sister campus in Urbana-Champaign where he had been a highly regarded assistant coach for 13 years under former Illini coach and future Hall of Famer Lou Henson. At Illinois, Collins developed a reputation as one of the top recruiters in the nation, helping put together the class that took the Orange & Blue on the magical run to the NCAA Final Four in 1989. During his tenure with the Fighting Illini, Collins helped the squad to a 279-129 record (.684). In the tough Big Ten, Illinois compiled a 144-90 mark during his 13 years which included a share of the regular season title in the 1983-84 season. His relationship with Henson, one of the NCAA Division I's all-time winningest coaches, has also shaped his life significantly. This relationship began when Collins was a star guard under Henson at New Mexico State. During his three-year career, he averaged 20.1 points per game and in his senior season, was named an All-American, pouring in over 24 ppg on an Aggies squad that finished 27-3 overall and advanced to the coveted Final Four. A first round draft pick of the Chicago Bulls in 1970, Collins had a short-lived career in professional basketball, with the Bulls and also the Carolina Cougars of the old American Basketball Association, before returning to the Las Cruces campus to serve as a graduate assistant under Henson. He worked there for two years, watching and learning from his mentor, but then got out of coaching for awhile. He returned to his true calling a few years later. In 1976, Collins returned to Chicago to start a trucking business. A year later, he became a hearing officer for the Cook County Probation Department, a position he held for six years. While serving as a probation officer, Collins also worked as a volunteer head coach at St. Thomas School in Chicago from 1980-83. He also coached in the pro-college league of Chicago and was named Coach of the Year in 1981. Then in 1983, he was reunited with Henson at Illinois, replacing Tony Yates who left to take the top post at Cincinnati. It was a dream come true for Collins. From his time spent in the City of Broad Shoulders, Collins developed a strong rapport with a number of the Chicago Public League and suburban coaches, many of whom he played with in pickup games. This experience helped him recruit players who were key to much of the Illini's success. Names like Kendall Gill (Rich Central), Marcus Liberty (King), Nick Anderson (Simeon), Deon Thomas (Simeon), Kenny Battle (West Aurora), Kiwane Garris (Westinghouse) and Lowell Hamilton (Providence St. Mel) are a big part of Illini basketball lore. With an outstanding group of local products on the 1998-99 squad, led by former high school All-American and two-year Illini starter, Bryant Notree (Simeon), and First-Team All-State selection, Cory Little (Addison Trail), Collins has begun to lure that kind of caliber of player to the Flames' program. Collins' familiarity with the Chicago area has given UIC a big boost in recruiting efforts as it continues to compete at a high level of play.
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ASSISTANT HEAD COACH
Dick Nagy
When Jimmy Collins was named head coach of the UIC basketball program on March 27, 1996, his first official business was to hire former Illinois assistant coach Dick Nagy. Nagy and Collins served together as assistant coaches to Lou Henson at the University of Illinois for 13 years. Nagy himself, however, was an assistant for the Fighting Illini for 17 years and had developed a friendship with Henson even prior to their Illinois days. While an assistant at Illinois, Nagy helped guide the Fighting Illini to post-season tournaments 14 of the 17 years which included a string of 12 consecutive post-season appearances. In 1988-89, Nagy was a part of Illinois' most successful season ever as the squad recorded 31 wins and made an appearance in the NCAA Final Four. During his 17-year tenure with the U of I program, the Fighting Illini compiled a 361-172 overall record. Nagy, a native of Syracuse, N.Y., began his collegiate basketball career at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas. While a student-athlete for the Cowboys, he captained the basketball squad for two seasons and twice led the team to a 20-6 record. After earning his bachelor's degree in physical education and history in 1967, Nagy then went on to serve as an assistant coach at the school for two more years while earning a master's degree in education in 1969. Nagy later moved on to start the basketball program at Barton County Community College in Great Bend, Ks., in 1969. He served as the team's head coach for seven seasons and in 1973 took on added responsibilities as the school's director of athletics. Following the 1976 season, Nagy moved into private business for one year before accepting the head coaching job at East Central Community College in Union, Mo. He spent the next two seasons at East Central prior to joining the Fighting Illini in 1979. Nagy and his wife, Janelle, reside in Wadsworth, Ill. Nagy has two children, Robin and Scott. Robin resides with her husband, Michael, and their sons, Matthew, Damon and Derek in Springdale, Ark. while Scott is the head basketball coach at South Dakota State University and resides with his wife, Jamie, and their two sons, Nicholas and Tyler.
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ASSISTANT HEAD COACH
Mark Coomes
Jimmy Collins knew exactly what he was getting when he lured junior college coaching whiz, and former colleague, Mark Coomes from Wabash Valley College to the University of Illinois at Chicago four years ago. Coomes and Collins served as assistant coaches together at the University of Illinois under Lou Henson for nine years.
Coomes joined the UIC crew after his second two-year stint as the head coach at Wabash Valley College in Mt. Carmel, Ill. During the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons, his squads compiled an impressive 64-6 record, including a 34-3 mark and a fifth-place finish in the country in '95-96. His squads were also champions of the Great Rivers Athletic Conference all four seasons he coached at WVC. Thirty-four wins in '95-96 set a new school record while the Warriors' 24 consecutive victories was also a new school mark. Coomes left WVC with a record of 127 wins and only 19 losses for an 87% winning percentage which is the best in school history.
Prior to his position at Wabash Valley College, Coomes was an assistant coach at the University of Illinois for nine years. While there, he coached several outstanding players including NBA stars Nick Anderson and Kendall Gill. Coomes also helped direct the Fighting Illini to its most memorable season in school history when the squad compiled a 31-5 record and made an NCAA Final Four appearance in Seattle in 1989.
In 1984-85, Coomes was head coach and athletic director at the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville. Under Coomes, the Screaming Eagles won the Great Lakes Valley Conference championship and received a first-ever bid to the NCAA Division II tournament.
From 1982-84, Coomes' first two teams at Wabash Valley College posted an overall record of 63-13. He was named NJCAA Region 24 Coach of the Year during both seasons, which featured the Warriors' first-ever trips to the NJCAA National Tournament.
Prior to his success as a head coach, Coomes served as an assistant coach at Northern Illinois University from 1977-82. His first coaching assignment came as a graduate assistant for Henson at New Mexico State in 1974-75, before following Henson to Illinois the next year.
Coomes played his collegiate basketball at Western Illinois University and earned his bachelor's degree from there in 1974. In 1975, he received his master's degree in Education Management and Development from New Mexico State. Coomes has two children, Anthony, 23, a former two-year starter for the Flames, and Andrea, 20. He resides in Chicago with his wife, Kathie.
Entering his fourth season on the Flames' coaching staff as an assistant coach is Gene Cross. Cross has assisted Head Coach Jimmy Collins in achieving a career record of 44-31, a 1998 Midwestern Collegiate Championship and UIC's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Cross played four seasons of basketball at the University of Illinois for Head Coach Lou Henson, Collins and fellow UIC assistants, Dick Nagy and Mark Coomes from 1990-94, making two NCAA Tournament appearances. Away from the basketball court, Cross served two years as chairperson for the Buddy Program Core Committee (for incoming African-American students) and was also a speaker for the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics' Hometown Heroes program. After receiving his bachelor's degree in history from Illinois in 1994, Cross worked briefly for Busey Bank and Cunningham Children's Home in Urbana before enrolling in the master's program at The Ohio State University. While at Ohio State, Cross worked as a Graduate Administrative Associate in the Department of Recreation and Intramural Sports where he was in charge of informal campus recreation. He also served as an assistant varsity basketball coach at Marion-Franklin High School of the Columbus Public League. Additionally, Cross was also head coach of Marion-Franklin's freshman team. Cross, who completed in master's degree in Sport Management in August of '96, is a native of Chicago who played his prep basketball at Rich Central High School under IBCA Hall of Fame Coach Ron Brauer. This past year, Cross served on the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Assistant Coaches Committee and he is also a member of the Black Coaches Association. He is single and currently resides in Oak Park, Ill.
