Always Be Closing: Elwyn McRoy a masterful recruiter
February 26, 2009
Allow
me to introduce you to an upcoming star on the coaching
scene. He has already established himself as one of the
most skilled recruiters in the land as well as an
exceptional coach. A veteran coach and recruiter at the
collegiate level, Elwyn McRoy has 12 years of experience
as an assistant and head coach and has made an impact both
on and off the court.
McRoy who is in his first year as an assistant at Arkansas
State under John Brady, spent the previous two seasons as
an assistant coach and the recruiting coordinator at
Georgia Southern, where he helped lead the Eagles to a
20-12 record last season. More impressively, he was the
key ingredient in the recruitment of Mid-Florida Player of
the Year Tyrone Crunell, Kansas Junior College Player of
the Year and first team All-America selection Julian Allen
and Second Team NJCAA All-America pick Antonio Hanson. In
only two seasons with Georgia Southern, McRoy managed to
get some of the nation’s top prospects on campus and turn
them into stars. These players are a true testament to his
recruiting ability.
Elwyn also spent five seasons at the junior college level
where he coached 28 players that went on to play at the
NCAA Division I level. He brought with him to these
institutions his rare ability to recruit top level talent.
While at the junior college level, he was influential in
the development and recruitment of 2004-2005 Big 12
Conference Newcomer of the Year Taj Gray (Oklahoma Sooners)
as well as the 2005-2006 Horizon Conference Player of the
Year Brandon Polk (Butler). Elwyn’s recruiting skills are
highly regarded nationally. In fact, McRoy was recently
named one of the top 12 JUCO recruiters in the nation by
Basketball Times.
In addition to Georgia Southern, McRoy also coached and
was the recruiting coordinator at NCAA Division I-A
Southern University. His recruiting accolades are well
documented, but his coaching successes should be
highlighted as well. While at Southern McRoy helped guide
the Jaguars to their best record in six years and their
first .500 conference finish in eight seasons. Before he
arrived at Southern, McRoy spent a year as an assistant at
Redlands Community College in 2001 where he helped coach
the team to the best record in school history (30-5) and
the NJCAA Region 2 and NJCAA Division II National
Championship.
McRoy knows how to coach and recruit collegiate players
because he too excelled on the court. As a player, McRoy
began his collegiate career at Butler Community College
and then transferred to Hutchinson (Kan.) Community
College, where he helped the Blue Dragons capture the 1994
NJCAA National Championship. After his graduation from
Hutchinson, McRoy moved on to Cleveland State to finish
his collegiate playing career and earn his bachelor’s
degree.
More than anything, McRoy brings the ability to recruit
elite level players to any program. Arkansas State Head
Coach John Brady says it perfectly when he describes why
he brought McRoy on board: “Elwyn brings an aspect that
will benefit us greatly at Arkansas State with the number
of contacts and people he knows. He possesses an
outstanding knowledge of the game and will enable our
involvement with players we may not ordinarily be able to
recruit.” He is able to use his extensive network of
contacts to attract some of the country’s best talent.
Great basketball programs are built around great coaching
and great players. McRoy brings both of these components
to every program he coaches.
Allow
me to introduce you to an upcoming star on the coaching
scene. He has already established himself as one of the
most skilled recruiters in the land as well as an
exceptional coach. A veteran coach and recruiter at the
collegiate level, Elwyn McRoy has 12 years of experience
as an assistant and head coach and has made an impact both
on and off the court. 
