Men's Basketball
Crean, Tom
Tom Crean
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Phone:
- 706-542-1432
Coach Crean's bio from the 2021-22 media guide
The palpable excitement Tom Crean brought to his introductory press session as Georgia Basketball’s 22nd head coach on March 16, 2018, has continued with his tireless effort to turn the Bulldogs into a national power.
During his initial meeting with the media, Crean enthusiastically professed his appreciation for UGA’s reputation as one of the nation’s premier public universities, which drew him to the job and his affinity for the Bulldogs’ motto. He then laid out his plan to make Georgia one of the nation’s premier programs.
”We come in knowing that we’re coming into a world-class university,” Crean stated. ”I’ve been privileged to work at some great places. This is a world-class university that is world-known for what they do, for what they are about.”
Quite a First Three Seasons
Crean’s presence within the Georgia program has been extremely impactful, both on and off the court.
Between the lines, Crean’s offensive-minded concepts have the Bulldogs scoring a pace seldom seen in Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia has reached the 90-point plateau 15 times in Crean’s first 90 games with the Bulldogs. You have to count back 387 games – all the way to the 2006-07 season – to equate the time it took the Bulldogs to score 90 or more points prior to Crean’s arrival.
As would be expected, those excessive scoring tallies have increased Georgia’s overall offensive production. Crean's metalevel offensive mind is regularly recognized and lauded by basketball brightest pundits. Last season, the Bulldogs put up 77.5 points per game, their highest scoring average since the 2003-04 campaign. In fact, Crean's teams have produced two of Georgia's five highest scoring averages of the 2000s as the 2019-20 Bulldogs' 75.9 ppg clip is fourth best in this century.
A significant influx of talent has been making its way to Athens since Crean arrived. Georgia has inked six consensus top-100 prospects under Crean, as many as the Bulldogs did in the dozen prior recruiting cycles combined. Headlining that ledger was of course Anthony Edwards, the ballyhooed Atlanta native who lived up to his hype en route to winning SEC Freshman of the Year honors before becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
All of the aforementioned has only strengthened the love affair between Crean and the Bulldogs’ fan base. In his first season, Georgia broke its all-time total attendance record at Stegeman Coliseum by more than 10,000 fans. A year later, that effort was shattered once again, with a new mark by more than 15,000 spectators. In addition, the Bulldogs’ home average of 9,651 fans during the 2019-20 season ranks second all-time in UGA annals.
Back to Day One in Athens
Crean touched on the potential for all of the aforementioned during that introductory press conference when he admitted he always kept an eye on the Bulldogs.
”I’ve always paid attention to Georgia,” Crean said. ”You can’t be in this business of college sports, college basketball, and not have a really good view of what it’s all about at this school. I’ve paid attention from afar, and I’ve been an admirer from afar. When you’re in a sports family like I am, you look at what’s happened with the different sports teams and you’re paying a lot more attention than just to basketball.”
Crean paid homage to the Bulldogs’ popular ”Commit to the G” catchphrase, realizing that motto also will be one of the focal points of his task at UGA.
”We have got to find a group of people that are going to ’Commit to the G,’” Crean said. ”I saw that long before today. I’ve been in Atlanta enough over the last year, I’ve seen that on billboards, and I think it’s really cool.”
The media certainly agreed Crean’s press conference was a victory. Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution provided the most descriptive offering: ”It would’ve ranked as one of the greatest pre-game speeches of all times if it wasn’t just an introductory news conference. Part Zig Ziglar. Part Herb Brooks. Part Knute Rockne...He won the news conference. I was ready to run through a wall for him (or, as a 5-10, 58-year-old, into the wall).”
As a head coach prior to Georgia
Crean arrived in Athens with nearly two decades of experience regularly leading his teams to national rankings and postseason bids.
Crean compiled a 356-231 record in 18 combined seasons at Marquette and Indiana from 1999-2017. Those teams reached postseason play during 13 of those campaigns, with nine NCAA appearances and four NIT bids. Crean led Marquette to the 2003 NCAA Final Four and reached four Sweet 16s at Marquette and Indiana. All told, Crean’s teams have been ranked in the Associated Press and/or USA Today polls during 12 seasons, including top-10 finishes in 2003 (No. 6), 2013 (No. 7) and 2016 (No. 9).
Individually, Crean has coached eight players who have won 10 All-America certificates. Thirteen of his players at MU and IU went on to play in the NBA, including nine who were on opening day rosters for the 2018-19 season. Nicolas Claxton joined that ledger in 2019 and Edwards did in 2020 as the amount of money Crean’s professional players have either earned or are under contract to earn surged to more than $700 million. Though Crean discusses the forenamed on-court success with great pride, he boasts with an equal amount of vigor that all 52 of his seniors at MU and IU earned a degree.
At Indiana
Crean compiled a 166-135 record in nine seasons at Indiana from 2008-17. His tenure can be broken down into to distinct segments. IU was 28-66 in Crean’s first three seasons and 138-69 over the next six.
When Crean arrived in Bloomington, he inherited a program with only one returning player, a pending NCAA probation and scholarship restrictions due to poor academic performance. The Hoosiers faced the loss of two scholarships due to an 866 APR score. Under Crean, IU received an NCAA Public Recognition Award each of his last three years and had a perfect four-year mark of 1,000.
The Hoosiers thrived on the court during the latter two-thirds of Crean’s tenure. Indiana won outright Big Ten titles in 2013 and 2016 and were ranked in each of those six seasons, including 11 weeks at No. 1 in 2012-13. During that span, IU also had the most potent offense in the Big Ten, leading the league in scoring (77.8 ppg), field goal percentage (47.7) and 3-point percentage (40.1). In fact, the Hoosiers led all Power 5 schools in field goal percentage in that time frame and in 3-point percentage since Crean joined the Hoosiers.
Crean was named National Coach of the Year in 2012 by ESPN and voted Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2016, the same season he was a finalist for Naismith National Coach of the Year honors. Three Hoosiers earned All-America accolades under Crean - Cody Zeller (2012 & 2013), Victor Oladipo (2013) and ”Yogi” Ferrell (2016). At IU, 21 of Crean’s Hoosiers graduated, with six – including Oladipo – securing their bachelor’s in less than four years and five of those earning master’s degrees.
At Marquette
Crean served as head coach at Marquette from 1999-2008, leading the program to the 2003 Final Four and four more NCAA bids. In his nine years with the Golden Eagles, Crean’s teams earned five NCAA Tournament bids, one more than the previous four Marquette coaches had in the 16 years prior to his arrival. Marquette also participated in three NITs, reaching the 2004 quarterfinals, and obtained AP top-25 rankings during six of Crean’s last seven seasons in Milwaukee. The Golden Eagles earned final national rankings of No. 9 in 2003, No. 12 in 2002, No. 20 in 2007 and No. 25 in 2008.
Crean was named National Coach of the Year in 2002 and Conference USA Coach of the Year in both 2002 and 2003. His star pupil, Dwyane Wade, earned C-USA Player of the Year honors in 2003 as well. Three Golden Eagles earned All-America accolades – Wade (2002 & 2003), Travis Diener (2005) and Dominic James (2007). After Crean departed for Indiana, two of his players were named All-America – Jerel McNeal (2009) and Lazar Hayward (2010).
As an assistant coach
Crean’s winning ways were well established before he became a head coach. From 1989-99, Crean was a member of the staffs at Michigan State (under Jud Heathcoate and Tom Izzo), Western Kentucky (under Ralph Willard) and Pitt (also under Willard). Those 10 teams combined to win four regular-season and two conference tournament titles. They also reached postseason play eight times (five NCAAs and three NITs). The season before assuming the reigns at Marquette, Crean helped Michigan State reach the 1999 Final Four.
Personal
A native of Mount Pleasant, Mich., Crean earned his bachelor’s in Parks and Recreation with a minor in Psychology from Central Michigan in 1989. While at CMU, Crean coached at Alma College and Mount Pleasant. Crean received CMU’s Distinguished Alumni Award in September 2014. He was honored at the 2014 Dick Vitale Gala for his outstanding contributions in support of the V Foundation.
While on the staff at Western Kentucky, Crean met and married the former Joani Harbaugh. They have three children: Megan (25), Riley (21) and Ainsley (15). Joani’s father, Jack, and brothers, John and Jim, are highly successful football coaches. Jack was a long-time head coach at WKU, where he won the 2002 Division I-AA national title. In 2013, John (Baltimore Ravens) and Jim (San Francisco 49ers) guided their teams to a historic Super Bowl matchup. John is still with the Ravens, while Jim is currently head coach at Michigan.
The palpable excitement Tom Crean brought to his introductory press session as Georgia Basketball’s 22nd head coach on March 16, 2018, has continued with his tireless effort to turn the Bulldogs into a national power.
During his initial meeting with the media, Crean enthusiastically professed his appreciation for UGA’s reputation as one of the nation’s premier public universities, which drew him to the job and his affinity for the Bulldogs’ motto. He then laid out his plan to make Georgia one of the nation’s premier programs.
”We come in knowing that we’re coming into a world-class university,” Crean stated. ”I’ve been privileged to work at some great places. This is a world-class university that is world-known for what they do, for what they are about.”
Quite a First Three Seasons
Crean’s presence within the Georgia program has been extremely impactful, both on and off the court.
Between the lines, Crean’s offensive-minded concepts have the Bulldogs scoring a pace seldom seen in Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia has reached the 90-point plateau 15 times in Crean’s first 90 games with the Bulldogs. You have to count back 387 games – all the way to the 2006-07 season – to equate the time it took the Bulldogs to score 90 or more points prior to Crean’s arrival.
As would be expected, those excessive scoring tallies have increased Georgia’s overall offensive production. Crean's metalevel offensive mind is regularly recognized and lauded by basketball brightest pundits. Last season, the Bulldogs put up 77.5 points per game, their highest scoring average since the 2003-04 campaign. In fact, Crean's teams have produced two of Georgia's five highest scoring averages of the 2000s as the 2019-20 Bulldogs' 75.9 ppg clip is fourth best in this century.
A significant influx of talent has been making its way to Athens since Crean arrived. Georgia has inked six consensus top-100 prospects under Crean, as many as the Bulldogs did in the dozen prior recruiting cycles combined. Headlining that ledger was of course Anthony Edwards, the ballyhooed Atlanta native who lived up to his hype en route to winning SEC Freshman of the Year honors before becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
All of the aforementioned has only strengthened the love affair between Crean and the Bulldogs’ fan base. In his first season, Georgia broke its all-time total attendance record at Stegeman Coliseum by more than 10,000 fans. A year later, that effort was shattered once again, with a new mark by more than 15,000 spectators. In addition, the Bulldogs’ home average of 9,651 fans during the 2019-20 season ranks second all-time in UGA annals.
Back to Day One in Athens
Crean touched on the potential for all of the aforementioned during that introductory press conference when he admitted he always kept an eye on the Bulldogs.
”I’ve always paid attention to Georgia,” Crean said. ”You can’t be in this business of college sports, college basketball, and not have a really good view of what it’s all about at this school. I’ve paid attention from afar, and I’ve been an admirer from afar. When you’re in a sports family like I am, you look at what’s happened with the different sports teams and you’re paying a lot more attention than just to basketball.”
Crean paid homage to the Bulldogs’ popular ”Commit to the G” catchphrase, realizing that motto also will be one of the focal points of his task at UGA.
”We have got to find a group of people that are going to ’Commit to the G,’” Crean said. ”I saw that long before today. I’ve been in Atlanta enough over the last year, I’ve seen that on billboards, and I think it’s really cool.”
The media certainly agreed Crean’s press conference was a victory. Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution provided the most descriptive offering: ”It would’ve ranked as one of the greatest pre-game speeches of all times if it wasn’t just an introductory news conference. Part Zig Ziglar. Part Herb Brooks. Part Knute Rockne...He won the news conference. I was ready to run through a wall for him (or, as a 5-10, 58-year-old, into the wall).”
As a head coach prior to Georgia
Crean arrived in Athens with nearly two decades of experience regularly leading his teams to national rankings and postseason bids.
Crean compiled a 356-231 record in 18 combined seasons at Marquette and Indiana from 1999-2017. Those teams reached postseason play during 13 of those campaigns, with nine NCAA appearances and four NIT bids. Crean led Marquette to the 2003 NCAA Final Four and reached four Sweet 16s at Marquette and Indiana. All told, Crean’s teams have been ranked in the Associated Press and/or USA Today polls during 12 seasons, including top-10 finishes in 2003 (No. 6), 2013 (No. 7) and 2016 (No. 9).
Individually, Crean has coached eight players who have won 10 All-America certificates. Thirteen of his players at MU and IU went on to play in the NBA, including nine who were on opening day rosters for the 2018-19 season. Nicolas Claxton joined that ledger in 2019 and Edwards did in 2020 as the amount of money Crean’s professional players have either earned or are under contract to earn surged to more than $700 million. Though Crean discusses the forenamed on-court success with great pride, he boasts with an equal amount of vigor that all 52 of his seniors at MU and IU earned a degree.
At Indiana
Crean compiled a 166-135 record in nine seasons at Indiana from 2008-17. His tenure can be broken down into to distinct segments. IU was 28-66 in Crean’s first three seasons and 138-69 over the next six.
When Crean arrived in Bloomington, he inherited a program with only one returning player, a pending NCAA probation and scholarship restrictions due to poor academic performance. The Hoosiers faced the loss of two scholarships due to an 866 APR score. Under Crean, IU received an NCAA Public Recognition Award each of his last three years and had a perfect four-year mark of 1,000.
The Hoosiers thrived on the court during the latter two-thirds of Crean’s tenure. Indiana won outright Big Ten titles in 2013 and 2016 and were ranked in each of those six seasons, including 11 weeks at No. 1 in 2012-13. During that span, IU also had the most potent offense in the Big Ten, leading the league in scoring (77.8 ppg), field goal percentage (47.7) and 3-point percentage (40.1). In fact, the Hoosiers led all Power 5 schools in field goal percentage in that time frame and in 3-point percentage since Crean joined the Hoosiers.
Crean was named National Coach of the Year in 2012 by ESPN and voted Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2016, the same season he was a finalist for Naismith National Coach of the Year honors. Three Hoosiers earned All-America accolades under Crean - Cody Zeller (2012 & 2013), Victor Oladipo (2013) and ”Yogi” Ferrell (2016). At IU, 21 of Crean’s Hoosiers graduated, with six – including Oladipo – securing their bachelor’s in less than four years and five of those earning master’s degrees.
At Marquette
Crean served as head coach at Marquette from 1999-2008, leading the program to the 2003 Final Four and four more NCAA bids. In his nine years with the Golden Eagles, Crean’s teams earned five NCAA Tournament bids, one more than the previous four Marquette coaches had in the 16 years prior to his arrival. Marquette also participated in three NITs, reaching the 2004 quarterfinals, and obtained AP top-25 rankings during six of Crean’s last seven seasons in Milwaukee. The Golden Eagles earned final national rankings of No. 9 in 2003, No. 12 in 2002, No. 20 in 2007 and No. 25 in 2008.
Crean was named National Coach of the Year in 2002 and Conference USA Coach of the Year in both 2002 and 2003. His star pupil, Dwyane Wade, earned C-USA Player of the Year honors in 2003 as well. Three Golden Eagles earned All-America accolades – Wade (2002 & 2003), Travis Diener (2005) and Dominic James (2007). After Crean departed for Indiana, two of his players were named All-America – Jerel McNeal (2009) and Lazar Hayward (2010).
As an assistant coach
Crean’s winning ways were well established before he became a head coach. From 1989-99, Crean was a member of the staffs at Michigan State (under Jud Heathcoate and Tom Izzo), Western Kentucky (under Ralph Willard) and Pitt (also under Willard). Those 10 teams combined to win four regular-season and two conference tournament titles. They also reached postseason play eight times (five NCAAs and three NITs). The season before assuming the reigns at Marquette, Crean helped Michigan State reach the 1999 Final Four.
Personal
A native of Mount Pleasant, Mich., Crean earned his bachelor’s in Parks and Recreation with a minor in Psychology from Central Michigan in 1989. While at CMU, Crean coached at Alma College and Mount Pleasant. Crean received CMU’s Distinguished Alumni Award in September 2014. He was honored at the 2014 Dick Vitale Gala for his outstanding contributions in support of the V Foundation.
While on the staff at Western Kentucky, Crean met and married the former Joani Harbaugh. They have three children: Megan (25), Riley (21) and Ainsley (15). Joani’s father, Jack, and brothers, John and Jim, are highly successful football coaches. Jack was a long-time head coach at WKU, where he won the 2002 Division I-AA national title. In 2013, John (Baltimore Ravens) and Jim (San Francisco 49ers) guided their teams to a historic Super Bowl matchup. John is still with the Ravens, while Jim is currently head coach at Michigan.
Coaching Career
| School | Position | Season | Years |
| Michigan State | Graduate Assistant | 1989-90 | 1 |
| Western Kentucky | Assistant Coach | 1990-94 | 4 |
| Pittsburgh | Assistant Coach | 1994-95 | 1 |
| Michigan State | Assistant Coach | 1995-97 | 2 |
| Michigan State | Associate Head Coach | 1997-99 | 2 |
| Marquette | Head Coach | 1999-2008 | 9 |
| Indiana | Head Coach | 2008-17 | 9 |
| Georgia | Head Coach | 2018-present | 3 |
Crean's Non-Head Coaching Career Year-by-Year Record
| Season | School | Record | League | Postseason |
| 1989-90 | Michigan State | 28-6 | Big Ten regular season champs | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 1990-91 | Western Kentucky | 14-14 | ||
| 1991-92 | Western Kentucky | 21-11 | NIT round of 32 | |
| 1992-93 | Western Kentucky | 26-6 | Sun Belt tourney champs | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 1993-94 | Western Kentucky | 20-11 | Sun Belt regular season champs | NCAA round of 64 |
| 1994-95 | Pittsburgh | 10-18 | ||
| 1995-96 | Michigan State | 16-16 | NIT round of 16 | |
| 1996-97 | Michigan State | 17-12 | NIT round of 16 | |
| 1997-98 | Michigan State | 22-8 | Big Ten regular season champs | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 1998-99 | Michigan State | 33-5 | Big Ten regular season & tourney champs | NCAA Final Four |
| 10-season totals | 207-107 | 5 NCAAs / 3 NITs |
Crean's Head Coaching Career Year-by-Year Record
| Season | School | Overall | Conf / Finish | Postseason |
| 1999-2000 | Marquette | 15-14 | 8-8 / 4th CUSA Am. | NIT round of 32 |
| 2000-01 | Marquette | 15-14 | 9-7 / 3rd CUSA Am. | |
| 2001-02 | Marquette | 26-7 | 13-3 / 2nd CUSA Am. | NCAA round of 64 |
| 2002-03 | Marquette | 27-6 | 14-2 / 1st CUSA Am. | NCAA Final Four |
| 2003-04 | Marquette | 19-12 | 8-8 / 8th CUSA | NIT quarterfinals |
| 2004-05 | Marquette | 19-12 | 7-9 / 9th CUSA | NIT round of 32 |
| 2005-06 | Marquette | 20-11 | 10-6 / 4th Big East | NCAA round of 64 |
| 2006-07 | Marquette | 24-10 | 10-6 / T-5th Big East | NCAA round of 64 |
| 2007-08 | Marquette | 25-10 | 11-7 / T-5th Big East | NCAA round of 32 |
| 9-season | Marquette totals | 190-96 (.664) | 90-56 / 1 regular season title | 5 NCAAs / 3 NITs |
| 2008-09 | Indiana | 6-25 | 1-17 / 11th | |
| 2009-10 | Indiana | 10-21 | 4-14 / T-9th | |
| 2010-11 | Indiana | 12-20 | 3-15 / 11th | |
| 2011-12 | Indiana | 27-9 | 11-7 / 5th | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 2012-13 | Indiana | 29-7 | 14-4 / 1st | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 2013-14 | Indiana | 17-15 | 7-11 / T-8th | |
| 2014-15 | Indiana | 20-14 | 9-9 / T-7th | NCAA round of 64 |
| 2015-16 | Indiana | 27-8 | 15-3 / 1st | NCAA Sweet 16 |
| 2016-17 | Indiana | 18-16 | 7-11 / t-10th | NIT round of 32 |
| 9-season | Indiana totals | 166-135 (.551) | 71-91 / 2 regular season titles | 4 NCAAs / 1 NIT |
| 2018-19 | Georgia | 11-21 | 2-16/13th | |
| 2019-20 | Georgia | 16-16 | 5-13/13th | |
| 2020-21 | Georgia | 14-12 | 7-11/10th | |
| 3-season | Georgia totals | 41-49 (.456) | 14-40 | |
| 21-season | Career totals | 397-280 (.586) | 175-181 / 3 regular season titles | 9 NCAAs / 4 NITs |
