While one Marquette assistant coach is on his way out of Milwaukee, one will make Marquette his third coaching destination in two months and another is on his way up the ranks of the Golden Eagles' basketball program.
According to a CBSSports.com report, former Marquette assistant coach Aki Collins was hired on Sunday to be an assistant at Memphis under head coach Josh Pastner. Collins will get a chance to matchup with Marquette on a frequent basis when the Tigers move to the Big East after next season.
Also, from a different CBSSports.com report on Tuesday, former Missouri assistant Isaac Chew looks like he will make his way to Milwaukee to join Marquette coach Buzz Williams' staff, two months after he had become a part of Jim Groce’s at Illinois.
And from within the program, the Golden Eagles announced Tuesday that former Marquette coordinator of student-athlete development Brad Autry will be promoted to assistant coach. Autry was the first staff member hired by Williams when he arrived at Marquette in 2008.
"During our tenure together he has been an integral part of all we have done, and he is more than deserving of this promotion," Williams said Tuesday in a press release. "He brings a skill set that I genuinely appreciate and admire and because of his tenure here, someone that everyone in our organization already has a relationship with. As our success has brought about some staff changes, I am very excited for what Brad brings to our program with his added responsibilities."
Autry had spent nearly two decades on collegiate staffs, at places such as Baylor, Tulsa and Arkansas-Little Rock, before coming to Marquette.
With big changes starting to happen at Marquette this offseason – assistant Tony Benford left to take the top job at North Texas last month – Williams said he's been very pleased with the continuity of his staff.
"In an industry where the one thing you can count on is change, I feel very fortunate to have been able to keep the core of our staff together over the last four years," Williams said. "I believe there are several reasons for that, but most importantly, it has laid an extremely strong foundation for what our program has been about. Our program is not about me, or a specific staff member, or a player – it is about us."
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