Courtesy of USF
By Vanessa Wenzl
Amir Abdur-Rahim was recently named the University of South Florida’s men’s basketball coach on Wednesday, March 29.
The official welcome induction for the new head coach and his family took place at the Muma Basketball Center this past Thursday in Tampa.
“There will not be [a] day you will be cheated with me as your head coach,” said Abdur-Rahim at Thursday’s induction ceremony.
Abdur-Rahim brings remarkable achievements with him.
He was named NABC District 3 and ASUN Coach of the Year after leading Kennesaw State to their first ever NCAA Division 1 Tournament.
Michael Kelly, director of athletics, appointed Abdur-Rahim as the 11th head coach in the university’s basketball history.
“Everything that we were looking for in a leader for our men’s basketball program, we found in Amir,” Kelly said in a statement.
The Bulls ended its season on a 14-18 record before firing Brian Gregory, former head coach, earlier last month.
“Ultimately, our head coaches and programs are judged by on-court success, and we have not lived up to our expectations for men’s basketball,” said Kelly in a statement.
After four seasons with Kennesaw State from 2019 to 2023, Abdur-Rahim built revolutionary growth and doubled wins to the Owls followed by their first ASUN conference.
The Kennesaw Owls finished eighth in the ASUN with a 15-3 record for their 2022-23 season, after only winning 10 games the season prior.
Abdur-Rahim spent two years as a graduate assistant at Murray State before he went on to be promoted to assistant coach from 2008-11 while earning his master’s degree in organizational communication.
