Sounds like an interesting field of candidates. Dan Monson would be quite the hire!
As for Riley’s replacement as Eastern’s head coach, some names with local connections remain available, though the extent to which they have been in discussions with the Eagles is uncertain.
Dan Monson, 62, was fired last month as Long Beach State’s head coach after 17 years in the position. Monson, who coached at Gonzaga from 1988 to 1999 first as an assistant and then as head coach, is also a Moscow High School graduate. He has an overall head coaching record of 445-396 and is a generation older than the 35-year-old Riley.
Will Conroy, 41, was not retained by new head coach Danny Sprinkle on the University of Washington staff and has acknowledged being interested in the EWU job on social media. Conroy was the Huskies’ associate head coach last season and played for Washington from 2001 to 2005.
Rachi Wortham, Tacoma Community College’s head coach, played at Eastern from 2003 to 2005 and later was an assistant for the Eagles from 2007 to 2011. He also was on the basketball staff at Oregon State and Montana.
Ryan Looney, 48, grew up in Spokane and has been Idaho State’s head coach since 2019, but his candidacy seems less likely after the announcement that Dylan Darling, a Central Valley High School graduate and former WSU player, is transferring to play for the Bengals.
As for Riley’s replacement as Eastern’s head coach, some names with local connections remain available, though the extent to which they have been in discussions with the Eagles is uncertain.
Dan Monson, 62, was fired last month as Long Beach State’s head coach after 17 years in the position. Monson, who coached at Gonzaga from 1988 to 1999 first as an assistant and then as head coach, is also a Moscow High School graduate. He has an overall head coaching record of 445-396 and is a generation older than the 35-year-old Riley.
Will Conroy, 41, was not retained by new head coach Danny Sprinkle on the University of Washington staff and has acknowledged being interested in the EWU job on social media. Conroy was the Huskies’ associate head coach last season and played for Washington from 2001 to 2005.
Rachi Wortham, Tacoma Community College’s head coach, played at Eastern from 2003 to 2005 and later was an assistant for the Eagles from 2007 to 2011. He also was on the basketball staff at Oregon State and Montana.
Ryan Looney, 48, grew up in Spokane and has been Idaho State’s head coach since 2019, but his candidacy seems less likely after the announcement that Dylan Darling, a Central Valley High School graduate and former WSU player, is transferring to play for the Bengals.