Homer Walter Drew Jr. (born September 29, 1944) is an American former
college basketball coach and administrator who coached at
Washington State,
LSU,
Bethel College,
Indiana-South Bend, and
Valparaiso. He retired from college basketball in 2011 with 640 career wins, which ranked him sixth amongst all Division I coaches at the time of his retirement. Drew was inducted into the
College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.
Drew made 10 National Tournament appearances and seven
NCAA tournament appearances in his career.
Drew put Valparaiso and its men's basketball program on the map over the course of his 22 years at the helm of the Crusaders with his “Building a Tradition” philosophy, which reached new heights in 1998 as Valparaiso advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the
NCAA tournament for the first time in program history. He amassed 371 coaching victories with the Crusaders, eight conference regular-season titles, eight conference tournament titles, nine postseason appearances, three postseason victories, faced the number one team in the nation in six of his last seven years as head coach, while also sending 32 players to the pros and 80 players into teaching or coaching.
Drew's sons,
Scott Drew and
Bryce Drew
Bryce Homer Drew (born September 21, 1974) is an American college basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes. Previously he served as the head coach of the Vanderbilt Commodores and in the same capacit ...
, have both been coaches at the Division I level. Scott is the coach of the
Baylor Bears
The Baylor Bears are the athletic teams that represent Baylor University. The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as one of only two private school members of the Big 12 Conference. Prior to j ...
men's basketball team, where he has served as head coach since 2003, while Bryce is the head coach at
Grand Canyon University. Both Scott and Bryce were also head coaches at Valparaiso, with Scott leading the Crusader program in 2002–03 and Bryce from 2011 to 2016.
Early career
A native of
St. Louis, Missouri, he achieved his
Bachelor of Arts in
physical education and
social studies at
William Jewell College in 1966 before completing his
Master of Arts in education at
Washington University in St. Louis in 1968. Drew then earned a
Doctorate in educational administration from
Andrews University in
Berrien Springs, Michigan in 1983.
Valpo career
In 1988, Drew moved to Valparaiso University. Valpo was a model of consistency under Drew, winning both the
Mid-Continent Conference regular season and tournament titles five straight seasons from 1994 to 1999, and again in the 2001–02 season. In 1999–2000, he led the Crusaders to their sixth consecutive conference tournament title, and in 2000–01 to another regular season title. This continuous success helped Drew achieve conference Coach of the Year honors three consecutive seasons, from 1993 to 1996.
Drew led the Crusaders to five consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1995 to 2000—the Crusaders' first postseason appearances as a Division I team. The pinnacle of Drew's coaching career came during the 1998 NCAA Tournament. In the Midwest Region, 13-seed Valparaiso was facing 4-seed
Ole Miss in the first round. Valparaiso was down 69–67 with 4.1 seconds remaining in the game, and Mississippi's Ansu Sesay at the free throw line. After he missed both shots, the Crusaders came up with possession—94 feet from their basket, and with only 2.5 seconds remaining in the game. On the inbound, Drew called the play known as Pacer.
Jamie Sykes inbounded a long throw to
Bill Jenkins, who drew two defenders and quickly passed the ball to Drew's son, Bryce Drew. Then, as time expired, Bryce released a 23-foot three-point shot, clinching the Crusaders' 70–69 upset and advancing them in the tournament. The Crusaders proceeded to defeat 12-seeded
Florida State University
Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...
83–77 in overtime. However, the Crusaders finally fell to 8-seeded
University of Rhode Island by a score of 74–68—the deepest run a Mid-Continent/Summit League team made in the NCAA Tournament since
Cleveland State
Cleveland State University (CSU) is a public research university in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 and opened for classes in 1965 after acquiring the entirety of Fenn College, a private school that had been in operation since 1923. ...
's run in 1986.
After coaching for another four seasons, Drew retired at the end of the 2001–02 season and took a post as Special Assistant to the President for University Advancement. As of February 21, 2002, Drew had become one of only 19 active Division I coaches to earn his 500th career victory and mounted a 26-season career record of 505–306, a winning percentage of 62.3. This made him the winningest coach in Valpo history, with a 236–184 record there. Drew is nominated to become one of Valparaiso University's 150 Most Influential Persons in the university's history.
For the 2002–03 season, Drew's son Scott took the head coach position, but then left after one year to become the head coach at Baylor. Homer Drew was rehired as head coach for Valparaiso's men's basketball team in August 2003, and led the Crusaders back to the NCAA tournament in 2004.
On May 17, 2011, Homer Drew stepped down as the head basketball coach and was succeeded by his son Bryce Drew. Having earned 640 career coaching wins (including 371 at Valparaiso), Drew remained with Valparaiso as associate athletic director.
On October 12, 2011, in a shocking announcement before the 2011–12 collegiate season, Homer Drew announced that he and his wife were both diagnosed with cancer.
His son
Bryce Drew
Bryce Homer Drew (born September 21, 1974) is an American college basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes. Previously he served as the head coach of the Vanderbilt Commodores and in the same capacit ...
wore a light blue blazer the color symbolizing the fight against
prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...
in his first regular season game versus the
Arizona Wildcats
The Arizona Wildcats are the sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Arizona, located in Tucson, Arizona, Tucson. The Wildcats compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Divis ...
to honor his father and the team publicly dedicated their season to their former coach and his wife.
Head coaching record
See also
*
List of college men's basketball coaches with 600 wins
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drew, Homer
1944 births
Living people
American men's basketball coaches
American men's basketball players
Andrews University alumni
Basketball coaches from Missouri
Basketball players from St. Louis
Bethel Pilots men's basketball coaches
College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
Indiana–South Bend Titans men's basketball coaches
LSU Tigers basketball coaches
Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball coaches
Washington State Cougars men's basketball coaches
Washington University in St. Louis alumni
William Jewell Cardinals men's basketball players