Zachary Arthur Claus (born November 1974) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

basketball

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

who was most recently head coach of the

Idaho Vandals men's basketball The Idaho Vandals men's basketball team represents the University of Idaho, located in Moscow, Idaho, in NCAA Division I basketball competition. They currently compete in the Big Sky Conference. The Vandals are currently coached by Zac Claus and ...

team.

Playing career

Claus played college basketball at both Creighton and

Eastern Washington Eastern Washington is the region of the U.S. state of Washington located east of the Cascade Range. It contains the city of Spokane (the second largest city in the state), the Tri-Cities, the Columbia River and the Grand Coulee Dam, the Hanf ...

. He also spent a year at

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, but did not appear in any games for the team.

Coaching career

After his playing career, Claus began coaching first at then- NAIA

Nebraska Wesleyan Nebraska Wesleyan University (NWU) is a private Methodist-affiliated university in Lincoln, Nebraska. It was founded in 1887 by Nebraska Methodists. As of 2017, it has approximately 2,100 students including 1,500 full-time students and 300 ...

as an assistant coach and junior varsity head coach. He moved on to

Austin College Austin College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Sherman, Texas.Portland State Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

and

Sacramento State California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is the eleventh oldest school in the 23-campus California ...

. In 2005, Claus joined Mark Fox's staff at

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, where he'd stay for the next 10 seasons under both Fox and David Carter. In that span, the Wolf Pack captured three-straight WAC regular-season titles and made three appearances in the NCAA tournament. After Carter's firing from Nevada, Claus joined

Don Verlin Donald Gene Verlin (born June 15, 1965) is an American college basketball coach who was most recently the head coach at the Idaho Vandals men's basketball, University of Idaho from 2008 to 2019. Prior to Idaho, Verlin was an assistant coach at Col ...

's staff at Idaho. Verlin was placed on administrative leave and subsequently fired from Idaho after the school concluded he had committed NCAA violations, and the school named Claus the interim head coach in June 2019. On February 25, 2020, Idaho lifted the interim tag and gave Claus the full-time job. Claus was fired on February 27, 2023, after Idaho finished the regular season 10–21. Claus had an overall 28–88 record in four seasons.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Claus, Zac Living people 1974 births American men's basketball coaches Basketball coaches from Nebraska Idaho Vandals men's basketball coaches Nevada Wolf Pack men's basketball coaches Sacramento State Hornets men's basketball coaches Portland State Vikings men's basketball coaches Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball players Creighton Bluejays men's basketball players Basketball players from Nebraska Sportspeople from Lincoln, Nebraska