Cornell fires head coach Bill Courtney after six seasons

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Cornell fired head coach Bill Courtney after six seasons Monday, ESPN reported, opting not to renew his contract.

Courtney finished with an overall record of 60-113 (.311), including a 27-57 (.321) record in conference play. The Big Red finished last in the conference for the second time in three years this season, going 3-11 in Ivy play after having gone 2-26 overall in 2013-14. Cornell was the only Ivy not to make a postseason tournament during Courtney’s tenure.

“I appreciate Coach Courtney’s diligent efforts and his dedication to our student-athletes over the past six years,” said athletic director Andy Noel, who in 2010 hired then-assistant Courtney away from Virginia Tech, in a statement. “He is a first-class individual and I wish him success in his future endeavors.”

Courtney

Courtney’s uptempo style struggled to achieve consistent success after he took over for former Cornell and current Penn coach Steve Donahue, who led the Big Red to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances in 2008, 2009 and 2010, including a Sweet 16 berth in the latter year. Several current and former players under Courtney expressed what can be construed as their displeasure at Courtney’s departure Monday:

 

1 thought on “Cornell fires head coach Bill Courtney after six seasons”

  1. I never met the man, but clearly he was loved by his players and those around him. That being said, he was an abject failure as a head coach at Cornell as it comes to wins and losses, as the record leaves no room to argue otherwise.

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