Mike DeGeorge

Mike DeGeorge
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamCal Poly
ConferenceBig West
Record5–4 (.556)
Biographical details
Born (1970-01-03) January 3, 1970 (age 54)[1]
Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S.
Playing career
Basketball
1989–1992Monmouth College
Golf
1991–1992Monmouth College
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Basketball
1993–1994Beloit (assistant)
1994–1999Lawrence (assistant)
1999–2000Grinnell (assistant)
2000–2004Eureka
2004–2009Cornell (IA)
2010–2018Rhodes
2018–2024Colorado Mesa
2024–presentCal Poly
Head coaching record
Overall325–295 (.524)
Tournaments0–2 (NCAA Division III)
4–4 (NCAA Division II)

Michael E. DeGeorge (born January 3, 1970)[2][1] is an American basketball coach who is the current head coach of the Cal Poly Mustangs. He played college basketball for the Monmouth Fighting Scots and has previously coached the Beloit Buccaneers, Lawrence Vikings, Grinnell Pioneers, Eureka Red Devils, Cornell, Rhodes Lynx and Colorado Mesa Mavericks.

Early life

DeGeorge was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the son of coach Ed DeGeorge.[3] He grew up in Wisconsin.[2] DeGeorge attended Monmouth College in Illinois where he played four years of basketball and two years of golf, helping the basketball team win two conference championships with two NCAA Division III tournament appearances.[4][5] He received a bachelor's degree in psychology from Monmouth in 1992 and later received a master's degree from Viterbo University in 1999.[6] Prior to his coaching career, DeGeorge spent two years as a teacher, first at Marmion Academy in 1992, and then at Durand High School in 1993, both schools in Illinois.[7]

Coaching career

DeGeorge began his coaching career as an assistant with the Beloit College basketball team for head coach Knapton in the 1993–94 season.[5] He subsequently was an assistant for the Lawrence Vikings from 1994 to 1999 and for the Grinnell Pioneers from 1999 to 2000.[5] He was the recruiting coordinator at Grinnell and learned the run-and-gun playstyle there, which he utilized later in his career as a head coach.[2]

DeGeorge received his first head coaching job with the Division III Eureka Red Devils in 2000, serving four seasons in the position.[3] He brought the team from having had a mere two wins the year before he arrived to 17 wins by his final season, which was their best record in over 10 years.[3] DeGeorge then was hired by the Cornell Rams and served with the team from 2004 to 2009, helping them have their first NCAA tournament appearance.[3] He helped the 2008–09 Cornell team win the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) championship, with DeGeorge being chosen the IIAC's Coach of the Year.[8]

DeGeorge was hired as the head coach of the Rhodes Lynx in 2010.[8] He served in the position for eight seasons, coming in after the team had recorded 10 straight losing seasons.[6] He helped them share the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) championship in 2012–13 and repeated in 2014–15.[6] He was named the SAA Coach of the Year for the 2016–17 season, in which his team were the national leaders in assists, won the SAA championship, and made their first NCAA Division III Tournament appearance in 24 years.[6][9]

In 2018, DeGeorge became the head coach of the Division II Colorado Mesa Mavericks.[10][11] They had won 19 games total in the two seasons before his arrival, but he led them to 19 wins in his first season there.[5] He then helped them win consecutive Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) championships in his second and third seasons, which were the first RMAC titles in school history.[6][12] He ultimately served six seasons with the Mavericks and reached five NCAA tournaments while having an average of 23 wins per season; DeGeorge was the RMAC and NCAA West Region Coach of the Year in 2020–21 (when he helped Colorado Mesa finish the regular season ranked first nationally) and received the RMAC Coach of the Year award a second time for the 2022–23 season.[5][6]

In March 2024, DeGeorge received his first Division I coaching job, being named the head coach of the Cal Poly Mustangs.[5]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Eureka Red Devils (NIIC) (2000–2004)
2000–01 Eureka 2–23 1–11
2001–02 Eureka 5–20 2–10
2002–03 Eureka 8–17 3–9
2003–04 Eureka 17–10 9–3
Eureka: 16–70 (.186)[13] 15–33 (.313)
Cornell College Rams (IIAC) (2004–2009)
2004–05 Cornell College 6–19 3–13 9th
2005–06 Cornell College 3–22 2–14 9th
2006–07 Cornell College 8–17 4–12 8th
2007–08 Cornell College 9–17 7–9 6th
2008–09 Cornell College 21–7 12–4 2nd NCAA Division III First Round
Cornell College: 47–82 (.364)[14] 28–52 (.350)
Rhodes Lynx (SCAC/SAA) (2010–2018)
2010–11 Rhodes 7–18 3–12 12th
2011–12 Rhodes 18–9 12–4 3rd
2012–13 Rhodes 16–10 11–3 2nd
2013–14 Rhodes 15–12 7–7 4th
2014–15 Rhodes 20–7 11–3 2nd
2015–16 Rhodes 10–16 4–10 6th
2016–17 Rhodes 17–11 11–3 1st NCAA Division III First Round
2017–18 Rhodes 13–13 7–7 4th
Rhodes: 116–96 (.547) 66–49 (.574)
Colorado Mesa Mavericks (RMAC) (2018–2024)
2018–19 Colorado Mesa 19–10 14–8 5th
2019–20 Colorado Mesa 21–10 14–8 4th NCAA Division II Canceled
2020–21 Colorado Mesa 21–2 18–1 1st NCAA Division II First Round
2021–22 Colorado Mesa 26–10 17–5 2nd NCAA Division II Sweet 16
2022–23 Colorado Mesa 25–6 19–3 2nd NCAA Division II First Round
2023–24 Colorado Mesa 29–5 21–1 1st NCAA Division II Sweet 16
Colorado Mesa: 141–43 (.766) 103–26 (.798)
Cal Poly Mustangs (Big West) (2024–present)
2024–25 Cal Poly 5–4 0–0
Cal Poly: 5–4 (.556) 0–0 (–)
Total: 325–295 (.524)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References

  1. ^ a b "Mike DeGeorge". coachesdatabase.com. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Calkins, Geoff (January 8, 2017). "Radical New Era". The Commercial Appeal. p. 25, 30 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b c d Arnold, Patti (May 8, 2018). "Mavericks' new coach coming back to his roots". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. p. 9, 12 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ^ Ho, Matthew (March 26, 2024). "Cal Poly announces Colorado Mesa's Mike DeGeorge as new men's basketball coach". The Tribune.
  5. ^ a b c d e f "Cal Poly Names Mike DeGeorge Men's Basketball Head Coach". Cal Poly Mustangs. March 26, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Mike DeGeorge". Colorado Mesa Mavericks.
  7. ^ "Mike DeGeorge". The Volunteer. September 2, 1993. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ^ a b "Mike DeGeorge named Rhodes Head Men's Basketball Coach". Rhodes Lynx. May 18, 2010.
  9. ^ "Mike DeGeorge - Men's Basketball Coach". Rhodes College Athletics.
  10. ^ "Mike DeGeorge - Men's Basketball Coach". Colorado Mesa University Athletics.
  11. ^ Arnold, Patti (October 16, 2018). "Culture Change At CMU". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. p. 9, 11 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  12. ^ Arnold, Patti (March 13, 2021). "Follow the leader". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  13. ^ "Eureka College" (PDF). Eureka College.
  14. ^ "Men's Basketball - Past Seasons". rollrivers.com.