EXCLUSIVE: URI Hires Hurley
Friday, March 16, 2012
GoLocalProv.com has learned that former Wagner men’s basketball coach Danny Hurley has accepted the job to become the new men’s basketball coach at the University of Rhode Island. While URI has yet to officially announce the deal, sources tell GoLocalProv.com that Hurley will sign a multi-year deal to succeed Jim Baron in Kingston and that the deal could be worth just over $735,000 per season which would be in line with the median salary in the Atlantic Ten Conference.
Hurley just completed his second season at Wagner College where he led the team to a (25-6) overall record this season. In his first season at the helm, he led the Seahawks to a (13-17) record which was an 8-win improvement from the previous season for the program. His teams went (24-12) in the Northeast Conference in his 2 seasons on Staten Island.
The 39-year old Hurley built St. Benedict's Prep of Newark, NJ into a national power during his 9 years there from 2001-2010. Hurley led the Grey Bees to a 223-21 record, coached four McDonald’s All-Americans and developed four teams that were ranked in the top-five in the nation.
GoLocalProv.com was the first to report that URI's top target was Hurley and that they wanted to get a new head coach in place quickly. That's exactly what Thorr Bjiorn and the school did.
Efforts to contact URI officials were unsuccessful. There is no word from the school on when an official announcement will be made.
The following comes from his bio on Wagner College's website Wagnerathletics.com:
Hurley, a 1991 graduate of St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, NJ where he played for his father Bob Hurley, a legendary coach who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this past summer. At St. Anthony, Hurley was a member of a National Championship team in 1989 and a member of a team ranked No. 2 in the nation in 1991.
Following a successful prep career, Hurley headed to Seton Hall where he graduated in 1996. While with the Pirates, he played under former Wagner head coach P.J. Carlesimo and current UConn Associate coach George Blaney. For his career, Hurley scored 1,070 points while helping the Pirates to three NCAA Tournament appearances and one berth in the NIT.
Hurley got into coaching following graduation and spent the 1996-1997 season as an assistant coach at St. Anthony before latching on at Rutgers from 1997-2001 where he helped lead the Scarlet Knights to a pair of NIT appearances.
Hurley is the younger brother of former Duke All-American guard, NBA lottery pick and current Wagner assistant coach Bobby Hurley, Jr.
Hurley and his wife Andrea are the proud parents of two sons; Danny (12) and Andrew (10).
Comments:
Michael Trenn
8:33pm on Friday, March 16, 2012
Great Hire, URI! This should make for a big upgrade in the rivalry. GO PC!
donkey boy
4:01pm on Saturday, March 17, 2012
Looks like GoLocalProv was first...and dead wrong - http://news.providencejournal.com/sports/college/2012/03/bjorn-no-decision-yet-on-uri-coach.html
Were yer sources on Pine Street?
Matthew Russo
5:50pm on Saturday, March 17, 2012
They are only "dead wrong" if this doesn't happen. Hopefully for URI fans it does.
Scott Cordischi
8:08pm on Saturday, March 17, 2012
Take all the shots you want Donkey Boy! As I told the doubters last year when I broke the Ed Cooley to PC story, get back to me when Rhody officially names its new men's basketball coach. Something tells me you'll be just like the PC fan who ripped me and questioned the credibility of my Cooley story last year. He crawled back into his hole never to be heard from again because I was right and he was wrong.
Scott Cordischi
8:18pm on Saturday, March 17, 2012
BTW, Hurley and his wife were on campus Friday at URI. But don't let the facts get in the way of your cowardly insults "Donkey Boy!"
Joey Martin
12:16am on Sunday, March 18, 2012
Scott,
With all due respect, after posting this story yesterday, wouldn't it behoove you to update it today, considering the following? It's such a big story, it's been 24 hours since you took credit for the Hurley hire scoop, and most of all because URI released a statement today refuting the report. Seems odd that they'd do that if the hiring was imminent. But that said, how do you not even report the release today, with an updated word from your sources?
Scott Cordischi
12:30am on Sunday, March 18, 2012
Joey:
Generally we do not publish on Sundays. As I posted in my comments, Hurley and his wife toured campus Friday. While Hurley hasn't "officially" been named the URI coach, it's all semantics. My sources told me that the deal was agreed to which is why I published my story. It will only be a matter of days, in my opinion, before he is officially named the new head coach. What else would you like to know?
Schools don't bring a coach and his wife on campus when they're not ready to hire them. Schools interview just the coaches, not their wives. Once they are ready to hire the coach, they invite him to tour the campus with his wife.
Scott Cordischi
12:33am on Sunday, March 18, 2012
Furthermore, my sources confirmed that he was taking the job. What I was surprised to find out was that his total compensation could approach $735,000/year. I have also been told that his brother Bobby will stay at Wagner to succeed him as head coach.
Joey Martin
12:59am on Sunday, March 18, 2012
Scott,
Today was Saturday, not Sunday. I'm just saying that after such a big exclusive yesterday, not updating the story in some way today leaves your readers in the dark. Again, I'd have thought you'd at least post URI's public denial, especially since it seems to be in direct response to your story. I'm not arguing that Hurley's hiring is not imminent; just wondering why the public denial if it is.
And to pay Hurley $735K, about six times his current salary? Even though Wagner pays on the low side, that's far more than Kevin Willard is making at Seton Hall, even if they're on the low side of the Big East pay scale.
Scott Cordischi
12:27pm on Sunday, March 18, 2012
Joey:
I just posted an update for you and all Rhody fans on GoLocalProv.com.