Former Syracuse assistant coach Rob Murphy was officially introduced as Eastern Michigan’s new head coach at an 11 a.m. news conference Thursday morning. The announcement followed two days of speculation that the 38-year-old had already accepted the position.

Murphy replaces Charles Ramsey. He was fired on April 6, the day Murphy removed his name from consideration for the Kent State head coaching vacancy.

Murphy signed a five-year contract that will pay him $210,000 annually, according to a release from the Eastern Michigan athletic department. He’ll also receive a $15,000 radio stipend, and performance-based incentives as part of the deal.

‘Eastern Michigan is a perfect fit, it’s not a stepping stone for me,’ Murphy said. ‘This is a dream for me.’

A Detroit native, Murphy coached high school basketball in his hometown for six seasons before spending the last nine seasons as an assistant in the college ranks at Kent State and Syracuse. In 1998, he helped coach Detroit Central High School to a Class A state title, and in 2001, as a head coach, he led Crockett Technical to the Class B state title.

‘We are excited about having Rob Murphy leading our men’s basketball program into the future,’ said EMU Director of Athletics Derrick Gragg. ‘Coach Murphy has been on the staff of two outstanding college basketball programs and was also a highly successful high school head coach in Detroit. … We feel that his experience with outstanding teams has prepared him for this opportunity.’

Located just 35 miles west of Detroit, Eastern Michigan allows Murphy an opportunity to return home, where he has already established basketball roots, for his first head coaching position in the college ranks.

Turning things around at Eastern Michigan should be a large task, as the Eagles have not made an NCAA Tournament appearance since 1998. EMU finished with a record of just 9-22 this past season. It also loses its leading scorer, Brandon Bowdry, who graduated after this season.

Murphy was known as a prolific recruiter who helped the Orange land players such as Donte Greene, Jonny Flynn and Wesley Johnson. He has won everywhere he’s coached.

Murphy will bring that winning mentality to Eastern Michigan with the goal of playing beyond the regular season. He said Thursday that building a winner is the top priority.

For Murphy, it all starts Thursday.

‘The plan is to win and win as soon as we can,’ Murphy said. ‘I won’t sleep until we get to the postseason.’

aljohn@syr.edu

Published on April 20, 2011 at 12:00 pm