lon kruger retirement

“Our world lost a special person with the passing of Lew Hill,” Kruger said after Hill's passing. His legacy reaches into the coaching ranks as well. Final Fours at Florida and OU Head Coach at UT-PA K State Florida Illinois UNLV OU NBA with Bulls Assistant K State Pitt St Knicks . Steve Henson was named the head coach of the UTSA Roadrunners off of Kruger's bench ahead of the 2016-17 season. Throughout his three-and-a-half decades as a Division I head coach, Kruger proved to be one of the most dependable coaches in college basketball. “A terrific basketball coach and a much better husband, father and friend. Back to top. His impact these last 10 years on our student-athletes and the larger Sooner Nation is truly remarkable. All that just kind of came together. He quickly found an assistant job on Jack Hartman's staff at his alma mater when K-State hired him away after one season. Lon has earned a well-deserved retirement.”. Some bombshell news has dropped out of the Oklahoma basketball program today as head coach Lon Kruger has announced his retirement from coaching, according to multiple reports. Lon Kruger, head coach of the University of Oklahoma men’s basketball team, is expected to announce his retirement, KOCO 5 has learned. All who knew Lew are comforted by the many wonderful and loving memories. Later Thursday, Kruger acknowledged to SI Sooners that the past year of dealing with COVID has been tough on him and his team, but also said it was rewarding to watch them succeed through the challenges. Kruger, 68, has led the … He did it with superior leadership skills and a genuine kindness that included his constant encouragement of everyone around him. We have such a deep appreciation for the players, coaches and fans. News 9 Sports Director Dean Blevins confirmed the news, which was first reported by Jeff Goodman of Stadium. “And that was certainly his method here the last 10 years at OU.”, ”Lon's legacy at the University of Oklahoma,” said Harroz, ”will be one of unbridled excitement and deep kindness. LINK from CBS Was probably top 4 in game coach of past 10 years. He is permanently a part of our OU family and we are incredibly grateful for the gift of his leadership with OU Athletics, and for his deep love for our university. Sources confirmed to FOX23 that Oklahoma head basketball coach Lon Kruger would announce his retirement Thursday. Lon Kruger to retire Posted by sms151t on 3/25/21 at 2:30 pm. Hired ahead of the 2011-12 season, Kruger spent a decade in charge of the Sooners, guiding OU to an 195-128 overall record. In 2017, Kruger landed 5-star point guard Trae Young out of Norman North High School, beating out a score of college basketball blue bloods, including the Kansas Jayhawks. "It's been an honor to serve the University of Oklahoma as its head men's basketball coach over the last 10 years. There truly is 'Only One Oklahoma' and it's a great honor to be a Sooner for life.". NORMAN (KOKH) - Oklahoma Sooner's Men's Basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 35 seasons as a head coach, the last 10 at OU. Lon Kruger speaks during a news conference Monday, March 15, 2004 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. NORMAN, Okla. (WIBW) - Silver Lake-native Lon Kruger will retire as head coach of the Oklahoma men’s basketball team. In 1986, he was tabbed as Hartman's successor. After a decade in Norman, legendary college basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring. The people here are certainly amazing and our family is so grateful for the kindness and support expressed by Sooner Nation throughout the past decade," Kruger said in a statement. Kruger’s son was just named the head coach at UNLV on March 21, joining the ranks of former Kruger assistants who have landed head coaching jobs. Crutchfield spent eight seasons as an assistant under Kruger in Norman, rising to associate head coach in 2016-17. And I thought it would be just kind of a passing thing, but then it just kind of lingered. Last summer, Kruger's contract was extended to June 30, 2024, and next year he was set to make between $3.25 million and $3.4 million, according to Oklahoma Watch and USA Today. The tremendous success he enjoyed on the court over the last four decades, the meaningful mentorship role he served with players and staff, his dedication to trying to improve the lives of others -- it's a career he should certainly be proud of and that everyone should really take the time to study and appreciate," athletic director Joe Castiglione said. Kruger is ready to move on, embrace life after coaching and watch his son embark on his coaching career. "It's anything but easy to sum up the career achievements and impact of Lon Kruger the basketball coach and person in just a handful of sentences. But after turning the program in Year One from a 7-21 team to a 20-8 team by Year Four, Kansas State again came calling. Watch the Lon Kruger retirement press conference LIVE at today 10:45am (ET) / 9:45am (CT). Replies (10) Kruger’s impact on college basketball stems way past his work in Norman. Spanning nearly 40 years, Kruger’s head coaching career got started at Texas-Pan American and included a stint with the Atlanta Hawks in the NBA. CBS Sports' Matt Norlander reports that Kruger's decision was impacted by his son, Kevin Kruger, becoming coach at UNLV and the death of his former assistant Lew Hill in February. Then came the head coaching opportunities. In 1982, Kruger took his first head coaching job at Texas Pan-American, now known as Texas-Rio Grande Valley. The Spun - At 45 long years of collegiate basketball coaching, legendary head coach Lon Kruger has officially announced his retirement. Not a given that Young would be a one-and-done player for the Sooners, his star rose immediately, guiding Oklahoma to a ranking as high as No. Known for his guard-centric offensively philosophy, Kruger kept eyeballs on the Oklahoma program beyond Hield’s stay in Norman. A former guard who played for Kansas State in the late 1970s, Kruger kickstarted his coaching career shortly after his playing career ended by taking an assistant coaching job at Pittsburg State, a Division II school in Kansas, in 1976. Lon Kruger will retire, and is expected to move back to Las Vegas to be around his son, new UNLV coach Kevin Kruger, and also spend time with his grandkids. An inside source said Kruger, 68, made the decision based on a number of personal reasons, and informed the team Thursday afternoon. He coached the Wildcats as an assistant until 1982. section: | slug: oklahoma-coach-lon-kruger-announces-his-retirement-after-10-seasons-as-sooners-coach | sport: collegebasketball | route: article_single.us | “The people here are certainly amazing and our family is so grateful for the kindness and support expressed by Sooner Nation throughout the past decade. The Sooners made seven NCAA tournament appearances (and would have earned an eighth bid to the Big Dance had the pandemic not shut down last year’s tournament) including the memorable 2016 Final Four run with Buddy Hield, Isiah Cousins, Jordan Woodard and Ryan Spangler. He was the first college basketball coach to take five different schools (Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, UNLV and Oklahoma) to the NCAA Tournament and is the first coach to take four programs to the Sweet Sixteen or beyond. Reply. OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger announced his retirement on Thursday, culminating a 35-year career that included taking five different schools to the NCAA Tournament — with two of them reaching the Final Four — and more than 650 career wins. Kruger, 68, saw his Sooners' season end on Monday when they fell 87-71 to No. We have such a deep appreciation for the players, coaches and fans. Oklahoma men's basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 45 years in coaching, it was announced on Thursday. … And then he finished his career in Oklahoma. It was announced Thursday that Oklahoma men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring. Oklahoma men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger will announce his retirement in a press conference on Friday, SI Sooners has learned. Sources revealed that Lon Kruger was retiring as head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball program on Thursday, bringing the curtain down on a quietly successful 10-year tenure. NORMAN, Okla. — For the second week in a row, an esteemed OU basketball coach is calling it quits. Yeah, for sure,“ Kruger said. Former UNLV basketball coach Lon Kruger is putting away his coaching whistle and moving back to Las Vegas. There truly is ‘Only One Oklahoma” and it’s a great honor to be a Sooner for life.”. The leadership of Joe Castiglione and President (Joe) Harroz has established an incredible culture and standard that is better than any coach could have asked for. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: collegebasketball | pageType: stories | Kruger, a head coach at various stops since 1982, took over the Sooners program in 2011 and has collected 195 wins over his … Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 35 years of coaching, the university announced on Thursday. He also said Hill's tragic passing gave him pause. Kruger, 68, saw his Sooners' season end on Monday when they fell 87-71 to No. All Rights Reserved. Following 35 years of consistent winning as a head coach – including 10 seasons at the University of Oklahoma – Lon Kruger announced his retirement Thursday. Overall, Kruger posted a record of 674-432 during his collegiate head coaching career. The Oklahoma head men’s basketball coach is a native of Silver Lake, Kansas. 2 4. Oklahoma men's basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring. Between the various stops and the overwhelming successes, he became one of only three coaches to take five different schools to the NCAA Tournament. In 10 seasons under Kruger's guidance, Oklahoma went 195-128 and made seven NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s and one memorable Final Four run in 2016. Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger announced his retirement on Thursday, ending 10 season coaching Sooner basketball. We are heartbroken for Renee, L.J. 4 before the team fell off and was ultimately eliminated from the NCAA Tournament first round against 7-seed Rhode Island in overtime. 1 overall seed Gonzaga in the NCAA Tournament. Lonnie Duane Kruger (born August 19, 1952) is an American college and professional basketball coach who is currently the men's basketball head coach of the University of Oklahoma.Kruger played college basketball for Kansas State University.He has served as the head coach of the University of Texas–Pan American, Kansas State, … 4:18 pm ET, A former guard who played for Kansas State in the late 1970s, Shaka Smart named Marquette basketball coach, Texas search: Five candidates to replace Shaka Smart, 2021 NCAA Women's Tournament schedule, game dates, UConn's Bueckers and Iowa's Clark meet in showdown, Oklahoma's Kruger expected to announce retirement, Expert picks for every Sweet 16 game Saturday, Five candidates to replace Shaka Smart as Texas coach, Texas' Smart agrees to be next Marquette coach, GCU player dies in car crash days after NCAA tourney, NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 schedule, TV tip times, Coaching changes: C of C hires Winthrop's Kelsey. Oklahoma announced Friday that Kruger would retire. Oklahoma men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger will announce his retirement in a press conference on Friday, SI Sooners has learned. and Ellie. © 2004-2021 CBS Interactive. NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) – University of Oklahoma officials confirmed this afternoon beloved men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger will retire. How Lon Kruger landed in Oklahoma The announcement — and the reason why — didn’t surprise Chris Crutchfield at all. And this team this year was just such a joy to watch make progress and compete.“. Chris Crutchfield now serves as the head coach at East Central University in Ada after coaching under Kruger, and longtime assistant Lew Hill was the head man at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley before his untimely passing earlier this season. Live video HERE. Said Castiglione, “His track record of rebuilding programs everywhere he coached is made even more impressive when considering how he did it. Sources: Oklahoma’s Lon Kruger is meeting with his team this afternoon to inform … OU made it official via Twitter just after 3 p.m. On Thursday, Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger announced his retirement. March 25 (UPI) --Oklahoma men's basketball coach Lon Kruger has retired after 45 years in coaching, it was announced Thursday. He won with integrity, humility class and grace. Our thoughts and prayers are with Lew’s entire family.”. On Thursday, Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball head coach Lon Kruger is expected to announce his retirement after 10 seasons at OU. The news has been confirmed by CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein and Stadium’s Jeff Goodman. “And then the grandkids, shoot, the grandkids are just so much fun, you know? Longtime college basketball coach Lon Kruger is done coaching. Kruger said March 26 that the death of assistant coach Lew Hill and wanting to spend time with family were factors. Oklahoma head coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 35 seasons in college basketball, according to CBS Sports's Jon Rothstein. The Sooners will now begin another basketball head coaching search after long-time women's coach Sherri Coale also announced her retirement earlier this month. This was part of Kruger's career and calling: he was well-traveled but always found success. And then Kev getting the job. OU also made it to the Sweet Sixteen the year prior. Kruger saw great success at many different stops, including another Final Four appearance with the Gators in 1994. He took Florida to a Final Four in 1994. 6-keys: media/spln/collegebasketball/reg/free/stories, at Covering the impact of coronavirus on the sports world. Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 35 years of coaching, the university announced on Thursday. “It’s one of those deals where something like that happens, we’re such close friends, it jogs you a little bit. “It’s been an honor to serve the University of Oklahoma as its head men’s basketball coach over the last 10 years,” Kruger said in the statement. On Thursday, Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball head coach Lon Kruger is expected to announce his retirement after 10 seasons at OU. The sudden and tragic death of long-time assistant Lew Hill, the hiring last week of son Kevin Kruger as head coach at UNLV, and the appeal of spending time with his grandchildren, a source said, meant "it was just time" for the coach to move on into retirement. He won a Big Ten regular-season championship with Illinois several years later, then spent time in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks before heading west to UNLV. 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