EASTERN ILLINOIS PANTHER BASKETBALL WWW.EIUPANTHERS.COM EASTERN ILLINOIS MEN'S BASKETBALL EASTERN ILLINOIS ADMINISTRATION EASTERN ILLINOIS PANTHER BASKETBALL WWW.EIUPANTHERS.COM EASTERN ILLINOIS MEN'S BASKETBALL EASTERN ILLINOIS HEAD COACH JAY SPOONHOUR 14th Men's Basketball Head Coach (hired April 9, 2012) When he was about 16 years old Jay Spoonhour remembers sitting at the end of the bench at Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State) where his dad Charlie was the head coach and watching the Bears play Eastern Illinois and All-American Jay Taylor. Fast forward some 20-plus years and Jay Spoonhour has almost come full circle as on April 9, 2012 in Lantz Arena he was named the head coach of the Eastern Illinois University men’s basketball program. Spoonhour is the 14th head coach in the program’s history and only the third head coach since the program joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 1981. Spoonhour met with members of the media, members of the community and members of the Panthers basketball team as he first introduced his family to the crowd before expressing his excitement about getting the Panthers head job. “For anybody that gets a job that is a dream of theirs I don’t know how you start thanking people,” said Spoonhour. “Obviously I want to thank the administration – Dr. Perry, Ms. Burke and Dr. Nadler for the opportunity. I want to also thank everybody here. It’s not like I decided I wanted to be a coach when I got to college. This has been a dream of mine since I was in the fourth grade.” Spoonhour grew up in a basketball family with his dad Charlie a long time head coach at Missouri State, Saint Louis and UNLV. Spoonhour played college basketball at Pittsburg State in Kansas earning his bachelor’s degree in 1994. He was an honorable mention All-Conference selection. He then began his coaching career as a graduate assistant coach at Central Missouri helping the team advance to two straight NCAA Division II Tournaments. He joined his father’s staff at Saint Louis in 1996 and helped the Billikens make the 1998 NCAA Tournament advancing to the second round. He was hired as the head coach at Wabash Valley College in Mt. Carmel, Ill., for the 2000-01 season leading the team to the Junior College National Championship with a 36-1 record. He was named the NJCAA National Coach of the Year that season. The success and relationships that Spoonhour has created in his career have carried over to the manner in which many other coaches speak of him. West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins said, “Eastern Illinois has hired an outstanding basketball coach. Jay Spoonhour has won at every level of college coaching. He is an excellent tactician and game strategist who will bring charisma not seen in many basketball programs in American.” Michigan head coach John Beilein said, “I have known Jay and his late father Charlie Spoonhour for many years, and have the utmost respect for how Jay has earned the respect in our profession as an excellent basketball coach. Jay has been, and continues to be a student of the game and his teams’ have experienced tremendous success as a result. In my opinion this is the perfect choice for Eastern Illinois.” EIU athletic director Barbara Burke talked to coaches like Bob Huggins, John Beilein and may others during the process What Others Are Saying About Jay Spoonhour... of hiring the Jay Spoonhour. Again and again the people she “Eastern Illinois has hired an outstanding basketball coach. Jay spoke with continued to praise Jay Spoonhour not only for the Spoonhour has won at every level of college coaching. He is an type of basketball coach he was, but also the type of person. excellent tactician and game strategist who will bring charisma not seen in many basketball programs in America. Congratulations to “We were looking for someone that would be a great fit for EIU Eastern Illinois - Jay is a great hire!” and this community and found that person in Jay Spoonhour,” -- West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins said Burke. “We wanted someone that would bring a style of “I have known Jay and his late father Charlie Spoonhour for many basketball to Lantz Arena that is exciting and fun to watch, I years, and have the utmost respect for how Jay has earned the believe in Jay we found that. We wanted someone that has respect of those in our profession as an excellent basketball demonstrated the ability to win and again in Jay I believe we coach. Jay has been, and continues to be a student of the game, and his teams’ have experienced tremendous success as a found that.” result. In my opinion this is a perfect hire for Eastern Illinois. I look “Coach Spoonhour brings us great opportunity, an opportunity forward to watching the Panther program grow and enjoy success under Jay’s leadership.” to continue to build student-athletes in the great tradition of --- Michigan head coach John Beilein EIU,” said EIU President Dr. William Perry. “He brings us the opportunity for championships achieved in the right way and he “I think the first thing is that he is a quality person. He is a family man. He has a lot of good friends, but at the same time, he is a brings us the opportunity to succeed at the highest level which terrific basketball coach. He cares deeply for his players. It’s very is Division I basketball.” important for him to be part of their development on and off the court. He coaches for the right reasons. He loves the game and wants to make a difference in the lives of his players.” --- UNLV head coach David Rice EASTERN ILLINOIS PANTHER BASKETBALL WWW.EIUPANTHERS.COM EASTERN ILLINOIS MEN'S BASKETBALL EASTERN ILLINOIS HEAD COACH JAY SPOONHOUR Winning is something that Spoonhour has been able to do at all levels of SPOONHOUR FILE basketball. This past season he completed his third season as the head coach EDUCATION Pittsburg State (1994) at Moberly Area Community College in Missouri guiding the team to its second NJCAA Region 16 Tournament appearance in three seasons. In four total PLAYING CAREER Pittsburg State (1990-94) years as a head coach at the junior college level he has amassed a career Honorable Mention All-Conference record of 100-29. In 2004 Spoonhour was the interim head coach at UNLV HEAD COACHING CAREER guiding the Runnin’ Rebels to a 6-3 record as they lost in the championship 2012-Present ...................................Eastern Illinois game of the Mountain West Conference Tournament. 2009-12 .......................................Moberly Area CC 2004 ............................................... UNLV (Interim) After one season at Wabash Valley College, Spoonhour joined his father’s 2000-01 ............................. Wabash Valley College staff at UNLV from 2001-04. His father Charlie stepped down in the final ASSISTANT COACHING CAREER month of the season giving Jay a taste of the heading coaching experience 2006-08 .................................... Texas San Antonio at the Division I level. Following the 2004 season Spoonhour worked two 2004-06 .....................................................Missouri seasons each at Missouri and Texas San Antonio before taking over as the 2001-04 .........................................................UNLV 1996-99 ................................................ Saint Louis head coach and athletic director at Moberly Area CC. 1994-96 ........................................Central Missouri “I have been a coach, but everybody wants to be a coach at the Division I AWARDS level and go against the best,” Spoonhour added in his opening statements. 2001 ................NJCAA National Coach of the Year “You want to work at a place where it can be done with folks you want to be HEAD COACHING HISTORY around. So when it finally happens, what can you say other than you are MOBERLY AREA CC really thankful, excited and hopeful. I am hopeful we can do the kind of things YEARS W-L FINISH you fans at Eastern Illinois want to see done.” 2009-10 ..........25-6 ..................Region 16 Tourney 2010-11 ..........17-13 A St. Louis Cardinals fan; Spoonhour used a baseball reference to explain 2011-12 ...........22-8 ..................Region 16 Tourney what he sees as hope for the Panthers basketball program. UNLV “How many of us are looking forward to baseball season. I look forward to YEARS W-L FINISH 2004.................6-4 ..........................NIT 1st Round when pitchers and catchers report, because I’m a fan of the game,” Spoonhour said. “Tradition is at any time. Whether its every year or saying I can’t wait WABASH VALLEY COLLEGE until the schedule comes out to see when we are playing this team or that YEARS W-L FINISH 2000-01 36-1 NJCAA National Champs team. When you start expecting those types of things then it’s really fun. For folks that are Panther fans I can’t wait for the time when you are saying Overall Record (4)....................... 106-32 (.768) I can’t wait for this game, or we have to get there early because that stuff is NCAA Division I (1) ............................. 6-4 (.600) fun. We are going to play hard and we are going to have fun doing it. It’s ASSISTANT HISTORY this simple, when players are having fun, the fans are having fun and it’s got Texas San Antonio to start there.” YEARS W-L Conf. Spoonhour, 41, and his wife Nicole have three children Gracie, Charlie 2006-07 ..........7-22 .......... 3-13.... Southland Conf. and Sam. 2007-08 .........13-17 .......... 7-9..... Southland Conf. Missouri YEARS W-L Conf. 2004-05 .........16-17 .......... 7-9........NIT 1st Round 2005-06 .........12-16 ..........5-11 .......... Big 12 Conf.