April 25, 2012
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Samford head men's basketball coach Bennie Seltzer officially announced his full complement of assistant coaches and program administrators Wednesday as the Bulldogs' first-year head coach released the names of a talented group of up-and-coming recruiters and former collegiate players.
Joining Seltzer on the Samford basketball staff this season will be assistant coaches Scott Padgett, Yasir Rosemond and Jake Headrick. Seltzer also announced Anthony Saccoccia as the Bulldogs' Director of Basketball Operations, while Charles Newton was named as the program's Video Coordinator.
"I'm really excited about my staff," said Seltzer. "As a whole, these guys are really experienced and very energetic. Also, they all know the game of basketball, so these guys will be able to go out and mingle with the community, but they will also be able to recruit and find us some really good players. I'm really excited about this group, because they can teach the game of basketball."
Scott Padgett, an eight-year NBA veteran and former standout at the University of Kentucky, joins Samford's staff after spending the previous two seasons at Manhattan College. During his valuable stint at Manhattan, Padgett assisted in the development of the Jaspers' post and front court players.
Last season, he played a key role in Manhattan's 15-game win improvement as the Jaspers' finished 21-13 and played in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament, the program's first postseason appearance since 2006. The 15-game win improvement (all against D1 opponents) tied Manhattan with Toledo, Indiana and Nevada for the most in the country.
Prior to joining the Manhattan basketball program, Padgett spent the 2009-10 season at his alma mater on Head Coach John Calipari's staff. Kentucky advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, finished with a 35-3 overall record and was ranked in the top-five of both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls, including a No. 1 ranking on Jan. 25.
Padgett, a Louisville, Ky., native was a first-round draft pick selected 28th overall by the Utah Jazz in 1999 and spent eight years in the NBA. Padgett recorded 1,142 points in four years with the Jazz before spending the next two seasons with the Houston Rockets. He played the 2005-06 season with the New Jersey Nets. Padgett began the 2006-07 season with the Rockets before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, where he finished out his career.
During his time at Kentucky from 1995-99, Padgett helped lead the Wildcats to the 1998 NCAA National Championship, where he was named to the NCAA All-Final Four team, as well as the NCAA All-East Regional team and All-Southeastern Conference during the regular season.
In 1997, Padgett helped Kentucky to the NCAA championship game and was also named to the All-Final Four team. A true student-athlete, Padgett received All-SEC honors twice for his work on the hardwood, and he was also honored with Academic All-SEC honors in 1998 and 1999 for his success in the classroom. Padgett scored 1,252 points over his career, which ranks 32nd on Kentucky's all-time list.
Padgett and his wife, Cynthia, have two sons, Logan (11) and Lucas (9), as well as a daughter, Layla (5).
"Scott has played eight years in the NBA, won a national championship at Kentucky and really gets it in terms of coaching the game," Seltzer said. "He is an outstanding coach and will be a great addition to this staff. He has a phenomenal pedigree in the game of basketball and has already been a positive influence on the program here at Samford. He did a great job at Manhattan and I am extremely excited to have him here on this staff."
Yasir Rosemond, a relentless recruiter and native of Atlanta, Ga., comes to Samford after spending the previous two seasons as an assistant coach at Seattle University.
A former player and assistant coach at the University of Oregon, Rosemond spent five seasons as part of the Oregon coaching staff, starting as the director of basketball operations in 2005 before being promoted to assistant coach in the summer of 2007. Prior to returning to his alma mater, he coached for two seasons at Redlands Community College in Oklahoma, helping the team advance to the national junior college championship game.
Rosemond played a vital role in signing Oregon's highly regarded 2008 recruiting class -- Josh Crittle, Michael Dunigan, Matthew Humphrey, Garrett Sim, Drew Wiley and Teondre Williams.
As a player at Oregon, Rosemond competed for then Head Coach Ernie Kent from 1997-99. He also competed one season at Okaloosa-Walton Junior College in Florida, before transferring to Butler (Kan.) Community College where he redshirted. Rosemond then played for Kent at Oregon for two seasons, before transferring to Seattle Pacific where he competed for current Washington State head coach Ken Bone, for his senior year.
In the midst of a four-year professional basketball career in South America, Rosemond received his bachelor's degree in sociology from Oregon in 2003.
"Yasir started off at the junior college level and that's where I met him when I was at Oklahoma," said Seltzer. "He's really come up through the ranks and paid his dues. He's an unbelievable recruiter in terms of signing players from the South. He's from Atlanta and did an outstanding job at Oregon in recruiting guys from all over the country. He played college basketball, knows the game and is a great coach. He really relates well to the players."
Jake Headrick, a Birmingham native and graduate of the University of Montevallo, joins Samford's staff after spending the previous three seasons as the head coach at Chipola College in Marianna, Fla. Headrick compiled an overall record of 67-22 during his stint at Chipola and also tallied a 20-16 mark in Panhandle Conference play.
Headrick joined the Chipola basketball staff for the second time in 2008-09 after serving as an operations assistant and video coordinator at Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss., during 2007-08.
While at Ole Miss, Headrick helped the Rebels, a preseason last-place pick in the SEC West, to the semifinal round of the National Invitation Tournament and 24 wins, which was second most in school history. He handled administrative duties and assisted with both academics and on-campus recruiting.
During his first stint as an assistant coach at Chipola in 2006-07, Headrick helped lead the Indians to a NJCAA runner-up finish and the most wins in school history (33). While at Chipola, Headrick coached National Player of the Year JaMarcus Ellis, as well as a total of six players who went on to sign Division I scholarships. Headrick assisted with on-floor coaching, recruiting and scouting.
Before arriving at Chipola, Headrick served as an assistant coach at the University of Montevallo for one season, where he helped the Falcons reach the NCAA Division II Elite Eight and set a school record for victories with 29. At Montevallo, Headrick coached the Gulf South Conference Player of the Year James Hall and two All-Americans.
A native of Hamilton, Ala., Headrick graduated from the University of Montevallo in 2005 with a bachelor of science degree in kinesiology. As a two-year letterman for the Falcons, Headrick helped the team win back-to-back GSC championships and reach the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen both seasons. During his playing days at Montevallo, Headrick helped the Falcons to a 49-16 record.
Headrick graduated from Hamilton High School in 2001, where he was a three-time all-county selection. He averaged 21 points per game his senior season and helped the team to its first 20-win season in seven years.
Headrick's wife, Tommye, is also a native of Alabama and is from nearby Trussville.
"Jake is from Alabama, he's coached AAU basketball in the area and he's also come up through the ranks at Ole Miss and at the junior college level," Seltzer said. "He's been a head coach in junior college and has paid his dues. The first thing that jumps out to me about Jake is his hustle. He really gets after it and is a true go-getter. That's what I really like about him and I know that's what sets him apart in both recruiting and in relating to players."
Anthony Saccoccia comes to Samford as its Director of Basketball Operations. Saccoccia, a native of Steubenville, Ohio, and former staff member at both Michigan State and Indiana, is a 2007 graduate of Youngstown State University with a degree in special education. He also holds a master's degree in kinesiology from Michigan State.
Saccoccia spent the previous two seasons at Indiana University as the Coordinator of Basketball Systems on Head Coach Tom Creen's staff. Prior to his time at Indiana, he worked as a Graduate Assistant at Michigan State, where Saccoccia learned from heralded head man Tom Izzo.
During his two years at Michigan State, the Spartans made a pair of Final Four appearances to add to the school's already sterling basketball reputation.
Saccoccia worked for four years as a student manager for Youngstown State's basketball program. He became familiar with the Michigan State coaching staff during summer workouts as he worked the Spartans' summer camp for a couple of years.
A 2002 graduate of Steubenville High School, Saccoccia played football, basketball, and baseball for the Crimson and Black. His father, Raymond Saccoccia, was a successful basketball coach for Big Red during the 1990s. Saccoccia's uncle, Reno, is the long-time head man of the Big Red football team.
"Anthony was the video coordinator for two years with us at Indiana, but he was also a graduate assistant at Michigan State," said Seltzer. "While he was at Michigan State, both years they went to the Final Four, so he really knows what a championship program looks like. He did a little bit of everything at Michigan State, so with that knowledge he'll be extremely valuable to us as the Director of Basketball Operations."
Charles Newton joins the Bulldogs' staff this season as its video coordinator. Newton, a native of Lexington, Ky., and former player at Tennessee Tech, most recently spent the 2011-12 campaign as the Director of Basketball Operations at his alma mater.
Newton, a graduate of the prestigious Lexington Catholic High School, played two seasons for the Golden Eagles before graduating from Tennessee Tech in 2011. He saw action in 15 games as a senior and turned in a stellar 68.8-percent mark from the field -- the highest field-goal percentage of any Golden Eagle.
Newton also converted 3-point baskets at a 55.6 percent clip, going 5-for-9 from long range. His team-high 23 points led Tennessee Tech to a 106-44 win over Crowley's Ridge on Dec. 30, 2010.
During his tenure with the Golden Eagles, Newton was named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Honors Court for his strong academics, and received the team's John P. Hendrix Leadership Award. He also participated in a Reach USA foreign ministries program in which he traveled to China to play basketball with other players from the Lexington area.
In high school, Newton led Lexington Catholic in steals and assists and was a Team Captain. He comes from a rich family background in coaching and athletic administration -- his grandfather, C.M. Newton played at Kentucky and served as head basketball coach at Alabama and Vanderbilt. He later became athletic director at Kentucky, where he hired Rick Pitino to lead the basketball program. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Newton's father, Martin Newton, served as the Director of Basketball Operations at Kentucky and is now the Director of Athletics at Samford.
The youngest Newton is engaged to Morgan Cornelius and the pair is scheduled to get married in May of 2012.
"Charles was the Director of Basketball Operations at Tennessee Tech last year, so in getting to know him over the last few weeks, I know that he'll be really good for us as the Video Coordinator," Seltzer said. "He has an uncanny knack of knowing exactly what we want and what we're looking for, so he's already done an outstanding job for us here at Samford."
