[Chronicle]

April 27, 2000
Vol. 19 No. 15

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    McGrath is appointed Instructor, Head Coach of men’s basketball


    Tom Weingartner, Associate Professor and Chairman of Physical Education & Athletics, recently announced that Mike McGrath has been named men’s basketball Head Coach and an Instructor in the College.

    McGrath served as Chicago’s Interim Head Coach of men’s basketball during the 1999-2000 season after spending the previous seven seasons as an Assistant Coach.

    “I am tremendously excited about being an instructor and basketball coach at the University on a permanent basis,” said McGrath.

    “Having been here for seven years, I have grown to really enjoy this community. The students and student-athletes that I work with every day are truly remarkable. I look forward to working here each day and can envision myself doing so for a long time.”

    Under McGrath in 1999-2000, Chicago won the University Athletic Association title and advanced to the NCAA Division III postseason round of 16. The Maroons posted an overall record of 23-4, including a 15-0 mark in UAA play. Following the season, McGrath and Assistant Coach Rob Passage were named the UAA Coaching Staff of the Year.

    “Mike McGrath was one of the best assistant coaches in the country at the NCAA Division III level, and he demonstrated in his interim year that he has a wonderful potential to become an outstanding head coach, teacher and department member at the University,” said Weingartner.

    “His demonstrated abilities to both recruit and function as a successful head coach; his knowledge of the team, the community and the University; his support from the student-athletes and others on campus; and his long-standing commitment to the program all make him the best choice for this position.”

    During McGrath’s seven-year tenure as an Assistant Coach, Chicago won two UAA titles and twice advanced to the NCAA III round of 16. McGrath helped guide the Maroons to a record of 82-23 (.781) from 1995 to 1999.

    McGrath and former Head Coach Pat Cunningham were named the UAA Coaching Staff of the Year for the 1995-96, 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons. Chicago won its first-ever league title in the 1996-97 season with a 13-1 mark in UAA play then went 14-0 in conference action to gain its second straight UAA championship in 1997-98.

    A 1992 graduate of DePauw University, McGrath spent two years as an assistant coach there. In 1990, the DePauw Tigers advanced to the NCAA Division III championship game. McGrath is a native of Bartlett, Ill.