April 3, 2013
Contact: Greg Murphy (@CSUSID)
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Associate Head Coach Jayson Gee is leaving the Cleveland State men's basketball program after seven seasons. He was named the head coach at Longwood University on Wednesday.
"Jayson has been long overdue for an opportunity to show his skills and abilities as a head coach at the Division I level," CSU head coach Gary Waters said. "Now it's time for him to run his own program and put his stamp on it. I believe Jayson will do an outstanding job as the head basketball coach at Longwood University.
"We thank Jayson for the seven years he spent at Cleveland State and the tremendous impact he had on our program."
"I am extremely excited and blessed to have been afforded the opportunity to join the Longwood University family," Gee said. "This is truly a 'defining moment' for me and my entire family. I look forward to connecting with the Farmville community and the entire Lancer Nation."
Gee will formally be introduced on campus in Farmville on Wednesday, April 10 at 11 a.m. in Willett Hall.
During his time at CSU, Gee helped CSU to a pair of Horizon League Championships, one NCAA bid and four NIT berths. The 2009 squad advanced to the final 32 of the NCAA tournament after an opening round win over Wake Forest.
Gee played a significant role in virtually every aspect of the CSU program. On the court, he worked with the post players while also assisting Coach Waters in developing game strategy. Off the court, he served as the recruiting coordinator, was responsible for putting together the schedule and monitored the academic progress of the players.
The importance of Gee's role with the program was recognized once again at the conclusion of the 2011-12 season when he was selected as the 10th best assistant coach in the country by Daniel O'Brien in a Bleacher Report. In addition, Gee was selected to compete in the prestigious Villa 7 program in May of 2012. Villa 7 is a program which brings together university athletics directors and the country's elite assistant coaches in an effort to prepare the next generation of college basketball leaders.
Gee also garnered national recognition during the 2008-09 season when CollegebBasketballInsider.com rated him as the No. 5 mid-major assistant coach in the country.
In the spring of 2008, Gee was one of 18 individuals selected to take part in the ACE Program (Achieving Coaching Excellence), traveling to Indianapolis to take part in the four-day seminar that is sponsored by the NCAA's Black Coaches and Administrators Council. The ACE Program, founded in 1994, is committed to preparing minority collegiate basketball coaches for success as future head basketball coaches.
Gee joined the Vikings after three seasons at St. Bonaventure (2003-06), the last two as associate head coach. He began his collegiate coaching career at Youngstown State in 1989, becoming one of the youngest Division I assistant coaches in the country.
After four seasons in Youngstown, Gee moved to Ohio University as associate head coach. During his three seasons in Athens (1993-96), the Bobcats won the 1994 MAC regular season and tournament crowns and the 1994 Preseason NIT title. He played an instrumental role in the development of Gary Trent, who played nine seasons in the NBA.
Gee earned the head coaching job at the University of Charleston, his alma mater, in 1996 and guided the Golden Eagles to a 160-55 record over the next seven seasons, posting six 20-win campaigns and receiving four NCAA berths.
An inductee in two of his alma mater halls of fame, he was honored by both Springfield South High in 2000 and by the University of Charleston in 2008.
A native of Springfield, Ohio, Gee played four seasons at Charleston, helping the team to a 92-30 record, including a 30-5 mark as a sophomore. Voted team captain as both a junior and senior, he finished his career ranked third in program history in both rebounding (844) and games played (122).
