Beasley joins UTC basketball staff

Monday, August 1, 2011

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga coaching staff has all been together a season or two before.

Head coach John Shulman has hired DeAntoine Beasley as an assistant coaching joining Brent Jolly and Ricky Cabrerra.

Each of the assistants were players at Tennessee Tech while Shulman was an assistant for former Mocs coach Jeff Lebo.

"I've remained in contact with all of them ever since," said Beasley, who spent last year as an assistant in Cookeville and the previous season as a graduate assistant for Lebo at Auburn. "It will be a true family atmosphere."

Beasley replaces former assistant Jay Bowen who accepted a role as athletics director and coach at a prep school in Florida. Bowen spent one year in McKenzie Arena after taking the position previously held by David Conrady.

"We need to do a much better job of recruiting in Atlanta and Georgia and he'll be able to do that," Shulman said of Beasley who prepped in the Atlanta area. "He'll work with our big guys to."

Beasley played at Tech from 1997-2002 including one year as a medical redshirt to recover from Hodgkin's Disease. Then he played professional basketball in England for seven seasons before returning to America in order to pursue a coaching career.

"Our players will adore him," Shulman said of Beasley. "What an unbelievable role model. He's played pro ball and done what all the guys want to do. He has his degree. And he's overcome life-threatening obstacles."

Cabrera concluded his college career in Cookeville in 1999 and Jolly finished playing in 2002 all while Shulman coached them.

"There is a common bond will all of those guys," Shulman said. "We knew that either Jeff or I was going to hire him."

"It was a no-brainer."