EL PASO, TEXAS - Billy Gillispie was named UTEP's 15th men's basketball coach on Saturday by Director of Athletics Bob Stull.
"I'm extremely excited to be the head coach at UTEP because of the great tradition established by Coach Haskins," Gillispie said. "It is an unbelievable opportunity for anyone and especially me, being from the state of Texas and having most of my roots in coaching in Texas. I'm excited to come to the Don Haskins Center because the fans are, without question, the best in the WAC. I appreciate [President] Dr. Natalicio, Bob Stull and [Senior Associate Athletic Director] Mack Rhoades giving me this opportunity."
"Considering the timing of the situation, we had to make a decision that was in the best interest of our basketball program," Stull said. "The options were either to name [assistant coach] Junsie Cotton as interim coach and wait to name a coach until the end of the season, or conduct a quick search, see who was available, and determine if anyone was appropriate for UTEP at this time.
"Throughout the search process, we received a number of quality applicants, even at this late date," Stull said. "Billy fit all the criteria we were looking for in a head coach. He is familiar with UTEP and the Western Athletic Conference, he has background in the state of Texas, and he comes from programs at Tulsa and Illinois that have exhibited tremendous success. We're fortunate to get someone who has been associated with winning programs for 20 years, including as a head coach in the high school and junior college ranks."
Gillispie, 42, comes to the Sun City following a highly-successful eight-year Division I stint as an assistant coach at Baylor, Tulsa and Illinois. He also brings a reputation as being one of the top recruiters in the Southwest.
Most recently, Gillispie was a member of Bill Self's staff at Tulsa (1997-00) and Illinois (2000-02). He was part of a coaching unit that recorded 85 wins over the last three years, the second-highest total in the nation during that period, and captured four consecutive conference championships (two Big Ten, two Western Athletic Conference). In addition, Gillispie was a member of the only coaching staff in NCAA history to lead two different schools to the Elite Eight in successive seasons (Tulsa 2000, Illinois 2001).
Tulsa registered a 32-5 mark in 1999-00. Illinois fashioned a composite mark of 51-16 the last two years, winning back-to-back Big Ten titles for the first time in 50 years. Self became the first Big Ten coach since 1913 to win Big Ten titles in each of his first two seasons in the league. Illinois was a Sweet 16 team this past season.
Tulsa garnered a No. 9 ranking in the final USA Today/NABC coaches' poll in 2000, while Illinois finished the year rated sixth in 2001 and 11th in 2002.
In all, each of the last four teams Gillispie has been affiliated with have made NCAA Tournament appearances.
During his seven years as a Division I coach, Gillispie has recruited 24 players from eight different states, including 11 from Texas. Seventeen were high school standouts, and seven were junior college products. His efforts on the recruiting trail helped Illinois land one of the nation's top 10 signing classes in 2002. The group features Parade All-American Dee Brown, James Augustine, Aaron Spears, Deron Williams and Kyle Wilson.
Tulsa's victory total climbed each year with Gillispie on the sideline, from 19 wins in 1997-98 to 23 in 1998-99 and 32 in 1999-00.
A native of Graford, Texas, Gillispie was the top assistant and recruiting coordinator at Baylor for three seasons (1995-98) under coach Harry Miller. The Bears notched 18 victories during the 1996-97 campaign, following back-to-back nine-win campaigns from 1994-96. Baylor's 1996 recruiting
class was ranked as high as sixth in the country.
A 1983 graduate of Southwest Texas State with a bachelor's degree in Education, Gillispie got his start in coaching as a graduate assistant at his alma mater (1983-85).
From 1987-93, Gillispie was the head coach at three different high schools in the state of Texas -- Copperas Cove, New Braunfels Canyon and Killeen Ellison. His last prep team -- at Killeen Ellison -- recorded a 32-6 record in 1992-93. That squad set school records for winning percentage and points scored, while finishing the year ranked fourth in the state. Gillispie was nominated for High School Coach of the Year by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. His athletic director at Copperas Cove High, Hal Mumme, was formerly the head football coach at the University of Kentucky.
Gillispie joined the junior college ranks from 1993-94 as an assistant and recruiting coordinator at South Plains Junior College in Levelland, Texas.
Gillispie was a two-sport letterwinner (basketball, baseball) at Ranger Junior College in Ranger, Texas from 1978-80. He also attended Sam Houston State and Southwest Texas State. He is a member of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, Texas High School Coaches Association and the FCA.