Ed Cooley takes the reins at Georgetown, anticipates tough battle against Providence
NEW YORK — Was there room for a feeling of collegiality at this Big East Media Day?
Tuesday morning was all business at Madison Square Garden. It’s likely to be a different scene in three short months when Providence hosts Georgetown in an expected men’s basketball grudge match.
Ed Cooley’s departure from the Friars to the Hoyas was unprecedented. Providence fans are still sizzling at the thought of losing their coach to a conference rival. Cooley, Friars athletic director Steve Napolillo and others on this fall morning took more measured tones than what will float through the air on that Jan. 27 afternoon at Amica Mutual Pavilion.
“Obviously it will be emotional when I go back and have to compete against a Devin Carter, a Bryce Hopkins, a Rafael Castro, a Jayden Pierre, Corey Floyd,” Cooley said. “They’ve got a hell of a team down there. I’m sure it’s going to be a really, really tough game.”
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Cooley was the hometown native who made good when the Friars hired him away from Fairfield prior to the 2011-12 season. He reached seven NCAA Tournaments, capturing the school’s second Big East Tournament crown and first regular-season title in the process. Cooley recorded his 300th career win, his 200th victory at Providence and his 100th conference triumph with the Friars over the course of 12 seasons.
That success made it all the more cutting when Georgetown plotted a largely clandestine approach for Cooley’s services at the close of the 2022-23 season. Providence sputtered to a 4-7 finish that included losses in the opening rounds of the conference tournament and March Madness. Cooley was soon out the door to the Hoyas and Kim English was hired away from George Mason on a six-year deal.
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“I think it just shows you at the end of the day all our institutions are bigger than just one person,” Napolillo said. “You have to make sure you continue bringing in great people and prepare for anything.
“I would say like in any business some schools operate one way and some schools operate another. I’m always going to do it at the highest level at Providence College. That’s what we stand for.
“I have a lot of great colleagues who I look up to. I still feel we’re really blessed at Providence to be in the Big East.”
Cooley takes over a Georgetown program that largely floundered under legendary former big man Patrick Ewing. The Hoyas stunned the league while upsetting their way to a conference tournament crown in 2020-21, but those good times were shortlived. Georgetown is 12-50 over the last two seasons and has won just two of its last 39 league games.
Cooley is starting over with several members of his old Friars staff and a new cast of players. He recruited a host of transfers — Jayden Epps (Illinois), Dontrez Styles (North Carolina), Ismael Massoud (Kansas State), Rowan Brumbaugh (Texas), Supreme Cook (Fairfield), Austin Montgomery (LSU), Cam Bacote (Western Carolina), Donovan Grant (Oregon State) — and Idaho forward Drew Fielder, a freshman who was originally committed to Providence. Epps was a player who de-committed from the Friars out of the Virginia prep ranks before ultimately opting to spend a lone season with the Illini.
“He’s a dynamic individual,” Cooley said. “I think college basketball will see a fun, fast, multi-talented player.”
The Hoyas were picked eighth in the league’s preseason coaches poll. That’s one spot behind the Friars, who were tabbed for seventh despite a first-team all-conference selection in Hopkins and an honorable mention pick in Carter. Marquette was the favorite to repeat as champion thanks to seven first-place votes.
“I’m not looking in the past,” Cooley said. “That (stuff) will paralyze you, man. I’m pretty sure you guys have interviews where you look back and say, ‘Man, I did a (lousy) job with that interview.’ Coaches do the same thing, but you can’t keep your mind back there.
“It’s about where you’re going, not where you’re at.”
As for the notion of matching wits with Cooley or any other coach in the league, English redirected the question. He put the focus squarely on his players and their abilities in such situations. His next circled dates are a Saturday closed scrimmage with East Carolina and a Nov. 6 regular-season opener with Columbia.
“The game’s won on the court,” English said. “That’s not my focus. I’ve coached against guys who have been in Final Fours before. It’s not my focus.
“The game is won on the court. If we lose, it’s because of me. If we win, it’s because of these guys.”
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Big East Media Day sets stage for Ed Cooley's Hoyas vs. Friars showdown
