When we think of mid major programs that have been successful, for the most part Butler is the first school that pops in our mind. This is mainly due to their recent back to back trips to the national title game. We also remember the runs of Gonzaga in the past, but everyone seems to forget that the original mid major to pop onto the scene is Georgetown. Yes, I said Georgetown. Now, let’s consider Eastern Michigan.
The recent hire of Rob Murphy as men’s head coach may catapult them into this conversation very soon. Rob Murphy is a perfect hire for Eastern Michigan because he will be able to recruit from two of the top recruiting areas in the country: Michigan and Ohio. With his ties to the Detroit Public School League and travel teams in Detroit you should start seeing recruits going there fairly soon. He also has ties in the Cleveland area because of his time at Kent State. Not very many first time head coaches can walk into a home visit and be able to say that they have coached athletes that have made it to the pros. Rob Murphy, might I add, has won on the high school and collegiate level. Coach Murphy’s resume is very impressive and the list of players that he has coached may be more impressive to a recruit. Antonio Gates (San Diego Chargers - yes he was a college basketball player) and Maurice Ager (Michigan State) are just a couple of the athletes that Coach Murphy has coached that have gone on to the pros. Within the coaching ranks, Murphy is known to run a tight ship; have very organized practices; and to never accept an excuse from his players.
With all this being said, it is safe to say that with fertile recruiting ground like Michigan and Ohio to glean players from; Eastern Michigan should be battling for a conference title in the next two years and should remain atop the Mid -American Conference until a bigger program lures Coach Murphy away. So stay tuned…
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