Georgetown hires Ed Cooley to revive Hoyas men's basketball

Ed Cooley is  Georgetown's new head coach, the school announced Monday.

The Cooley hire marks a significant upgrade from the doldrums Georgetown's program endured under Patrick Ewing, which included a 29-game conference losing streak and 13-50 record the past two seasons.

"Ed is a proven leader and an experienced coach, whose values and knowledge of the game will lead our program into this new chapter," Georgetown president John J. DeGioia said in the school's announcement. "His commitment to excellence on and off the court will bring out the best of our basketball program and will give each member of our team the experiences and support they need to thrive."

Georgetown's targeting and landing a Big East rival represents a significant coup, as Cooley consistently overachieved at Providence. He reached the NCAA tournament in seven of the past nine years it has been held, and that run included a Big East regular-season championship in 2021-22.

"I am excited for the opportunity to lead the men's basketball program at Georgetown University," Cooley said. "I plan on hitting the ground running, getting to work on the court and cultivating relationships in and around the District. Accepting this opportunity with Georgetown is not a decision I took lightly."

Georgetown has reached the NCAA tournament in just one of the past seven years that it has been held, and the school extended Ewing after he clinched his lone NCAA bid by winning the Big East tournament in a year that it finished 13-13. Georgetown hasn't finished with a winning record in the Big East since 2014-15.

"Coach Cooley is a mentor to young men, and a consistent winner with an impressive body of work," athletic director Lee Reed said. "I am confident that he is the coach to return our program to prominence within the BIG EAST and nationally."

Considering Georgetown's location in the middle of Washington, D.C., arguably the best basketball city in the country, the upside of the program is considered higher than Providence's. The Hoyas have reached five Final Fours in program history and won the 1984 national title.

Cooley will be tasked with those types of expectations after a successful run at Providence, where he went 242-153 over 12 seasons. Providence said it will begin a search for a new head coach following Cooley's departure.

Cooley, 53, was pursued for other jobs in the past, most notably Michigan in 2019 when the Wolverines ultimately hired Juwan Howard. He withdrew from consideration for the job after conversations with Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel, returning to Providence on a multiyear contract extension.

Providence officials went to great lengths to attempt to keep Cooley again this time, with sources saying he was offered a long-term deal with a pay raise.

Two names expected to be on Providence's list include Penn State's Micah Shrewsberry and George Mason's Kim English, sources told ESPN.

Cooley, a Providence native, has spent his entire coaching career in New England. He started as an assistant coach at UMass Dartmouth and then Stonehill College, his alma mater. He then spent a year as an assistant coach at Rhode Island before following Al Skinner to Boston College for a decade as his assistant.

Cooley's first head-coaching job came at Fairfield, where he led the Stags to a MAAC regular-season title in 2011 before being hired at his hometown school to replace Keno Davis.

In 12 seasons with the Friars, Cooley won the Big East conference tournament in 2014, which led to the program's second tournament title in its history. This season, Providence started 14-3 overall and 6-0 in conference play before struggling down the stretch en route to a first-round NCAA tournament exit, losing to Kentucky 61-53.

Also Monday, ESPN 100 prospect Garwey Dual told ESPN he is decommitting from Providence and reopening his recruitment. A 6-foot-5 shooting guard, Dual is ranked No. 37 in the 2023 class. He never signed a letter of intent in the fall despite committing to the Friars last summer.

Dual told ESPN he plans to completely reopen his recruitment and isn't simply planning to follow Cooley to Georgetown.