Ray Mernagh, Syracuse News

NBE STAFF SUPPORT SERIES: ROB MURPHY, SYRACUSE

by RAY MERNAGH

Rob Murphy insists his job –he’s going into his fifth year as an assistant coach at Syracuse — isn’t all that hard. Especially the recruiting part of it.

“The program sells itself,” says Murphy, “Syracuse basketball, with all the program has accomplished under coach Boeheim, sells itself.” Murphy knows this is true because growing up in Detroit, he was a Syracuse fan.

“Since the sixth grade really,” says Murphy, “I rooted for DC (Derrick Coleman) all four years he was at Syracuse and just never really stopped rooting for them.”

Murphy played college ball at the Central State in Ohio, a Division II, historically black college with a tradition of excellence in both athletics and academics. Murphy started working summer basketball camps immediately after graduating and eventually hooked on as an assistant coach to Oronde Taliaferro at Detroit Central High School (where a young man named Antonio Gates would display dominance on both the hardwood and gridiron).

Murphy and Taliaferro would take turns picking Gates up for school. Central’s student body was made up of kids that didn’t have a lot and Taliaferro has said in the past that at Central a kid making it to two out of five days of school was par for the course. Taliaferro would go 105-21 at Central and eventually win a state championship.

Murphy, or Murph as he’s known to most, would accept the head coaching job at Crockett Technical High School after that state championship season in 1998. Murphy took the job even though most warned him against it. Maurice Ager, who couldn’t seem to get a look at Southfield High School transferred to Crockett, mostly because Murphy convinced him they could do great things there.

Crockett hadn’t won a game the previous two seasons! By 2001 they were the Class B state champions in Michigan. When Ager headed to Michigan State (and the NBA later on) Murphy got a call from Kent State, who was losing Taliaferro plus head coach Stan Heath to Arkansas after a miraculous Elite Eight run. Murphy found an old friend waiting for him in Antonio Gates, who was dominating MAC basketball the way he now dominates NFL defenses as a pro bowl tight end. Murphy, like Syracuse, was an easy sell. He would constantly meet people on the road recruiting and draw them in — making an impression.

When Troy Weaver was leaving Syracuse for a job in the NBA, he recommended Murph as one of the guys Jim Boeheim should talk to about replacing him. Murph had the job a week later and has been at it ever since. Murphy’s job entails three elements crucial to the Orange’s success: recruiting, coaching wings and forwards (which at ‘Cuse often includes bigs) and preparing scouting reports of upcoming opponents during the season. He and Mike Hopkins — who will one day succeed Boeheim as head coach — split the scouts with each other.

Murphy is out on the road for all twenty days in the live period during the summer, but that he likes to stay around the program during the season as much as possible. “We’ll get out some in the fall,” says Murphy, “but we tend to stick together during the season because we’re so detailed with our preparation.” What’s the future hold for Murphy?

“I’m in a great situation,” says Murphy, “coach is unbelievable to work for plus I never put a time frame on anything as far as being a head coach or moving to another job. I’m more than happy here.” Murphy says the key to his success has taught him not to deviate from a plan that’s worked perfectly thus far.

“I work as hard as I can at my job,” says Murphy, “and opportunities have just kind of happened from that. I have a great job and I’m in a great situation.”

Sounds like when the time comes, the idea of Rob Murphy as a head coach — like Syracuse as a program — will sell itself.