Mon Apr 14 16:58:01 2008

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USF tabs Rex Walters as head coach

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San Francisco, CA (Sports Network) - The University of San Francisco has hired former NBA guard and ex-Florida Atlantic head coach Rex Walters to take over its men's basketball program.

Walters, who guided FAU to a 31-33 record in two seasons, was chosen as the Dons' next head coach by a search committee led by Chuck Smith, vice chair of the USF board of trustees.

"We have done our very best and hired a high-caliber individual who will lead us to prominence," said Smith. "Coach Walters is the right guy with the right qualifications and we're all looking forward to an exciting future."

USF had a vacancy after Eddie Sutton, one of the winningest coaches in college basketball history, left the post following a brief stint as interim head coach. Sutton replaced Jessie Evans on December 26 after Evans announced he was taking a leave of absence. Sutton arrived in the Bay Area needing just two wins to reach 800 for his career, and got six, helping the Dons to a 10-21 finish in the highly competitive West Coast Conference.

Walters grew up in San Jose, but played his college ball at Northwestern and Kansas, helping the Jayhawks to the 1993 Final Four. He spent seven seasons in the NBA, playing for three different teams from 1993 to 2000.

"This is an extremely exciting day for me and my family," Walters said. "I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to return to the Bay Area and coach at a world class university in an outstanding conference. The University of San Francisco has a tremendous legacy of achievement on and off the court and I look forward to working with the student-athletes and administration. I would like to thank the committee and USF for this once in a lifetime opportunity."

Florida Atlantic was Walters' first head-coaching position, having been an assistant under Matt Doherty at FAU prior to Doherty's departure for Southern Methodist University. The 38-year-old began his coaching career as an assistant at Blue Valley Northwest (KS) High School, before working under Homer Drew at Valparaiso University.