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New Georgetown Hoyas coach Ed Cooley broke a sacred Big East conference rule when he made the move from the Providence Friars early this year, catching many by surprise.
The 54-year-old Providence native has been a basketball coach for over 29 years. After a brief playing career at Stonehill College, he became an assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts in 1994.
Between 1995 and 2006, he was an assistant coach at Stonehill College, Rhode Island University and Boston College under Al Skinner. In 2006, he got his first head coach job at Fairfield University, a position he held until 2011. Next, he moved back home to become the coach of the Providence Friars.
At Providence, he had a 242-153 record, including seven NCAA Tournament appearances and two No. 7 ranking finishes. He also won the Big East Conference in 2014.
While the Georgetown Hoyas were successful in the mid-80s to late 90s, they have only been to one NCAA Tournament in the last seven years, showing the disparity between the teams Cooley has swapped.
Cooley replaced NBA legend, Patrick Ewing who had been the Hoyas coach for six years and posted a 7-25 overall and 2-18 conference play record last season.
The great betrayal by Ed Cooley
Ed Cooley is a Providence native, and when he led the Providence Friars to glory, it was seen as a fairytale sporting story.
His move to Georgetown was seen as a double betrayal by Friars fans when he not only left his hometown team but moved to a fellow Big East founding member rival.
During the Big East media days, Ed Cooley talked about his in-conference defection from the Providence Friars to the Georgetown Hoyas.
"Was it hard to leave? 1,000 percent. But Georgetown is change. And change is healthy. I understand the bitterness that comes with that. I promise you I'm excited to go back there this year. But I'm not apologizing for taking care of my life. End of discussion," Cooley said.
"I can feel the anger, and I get it. I understand it. I can internalize that," Cooley added. "But in our world, change is OK. ... I'll always be a kid from Providence."
Ed Cooley will lead the Hoyas when he returns to Providence for a game on Jan. 27 in what is sure to be a hostile coming for the local boy.
