Marshall University Athletics
White Accepts Post at Charleston
6/4/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
White Accepts Post at Charleston
6/4/2003
Greg White resigned as head basketball coach Tuesday to accept the positions of head coach and vice president at the University of Charleston, a move that will put him closer to his family.
"It was a great, great, great experience. Everyone there (at Marshall) was just fabulous,? White said at a press conference in Charleston. ?When I took that position, if someone had told me I?d be there seven years, I would have said, ?No way.? I had several different opportunities to leave Marshall as a coach. I leave behind some fabulous athletes, a winning tradition, a great, great basketball program."
White, 44, accepted a three-year contract with Charleston, the same school he coached at from 1990 to 1995. He maintains a residence in Charleston with his wife Donna and their two children.
"In the end this was a personal and family decision that made sense," White said. "My priorities have changed in the last seven years."
The external commitments at the Division I level, he said, including television and radio shows, speaking engagements, community involvement in Huntington and fund-raising events weighed heavily in his decision.
"I want to wish Marshall nothing but the best,? he said. "To say this was an easy decision ... it was tough, real tough. At the same time, when you think about your quality of life and the things that are important to you, your family has got to be at the top. And the job at Marshall is like any Division I job. It?s time-consuming. It?s 18 to 20 hours a day. When you?re not there, you?re thinking about there."
White, a 1982 Marshall graduate, leaves his alma-mater as the school's third-winningest coach with an overall record of 115-84. He guided the program through its transition from the Southern Conference to the Mid-American Conference in 1997, coached an NBA draft pick in Tamar Slay, and earned recognition for graduation a high number of his student-athletes during his tenure.
Marshall Director of Athletics Bob Marcum has not put a time frame on hiring a replacement.
"We need to get out and find the best candidate for the job and move forward," he said.
