As the Chico State men’s basketball team prepared to embark on the 2024-25 campaign, they saw a transition of power at the head coaching position with three-year assistant coach Cevin Meador handed the reigns the week before their first regular season trip.
Despite the quick turnaround, Coach Meador has shown his readiness to take on the responsibility for the program following the team’s recent trip to the conference tournament championship game and an NCAA DII West Regional berth.
For that, Chico State Executive Athletics Director Eric Coleman has named Meador the 13th head coach in the program’s long-storied history.
“Cevin stepped into a challenging situation just a week before the season tipped off and has led our team with poise, passion, and purpose. He is a young man who is wise beyond his years, and it has been a joy to work alongside him. We are excited about the future of our men’s basketball program under his leadership,” Coleman said in a statement. For Meador, becoming a head coach is a dream come true.
“I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to be at such a great place in Chico State. It is a phenomenal athletic department with a lot of great people and coaches to work with. Thanks to Coach Greg Clink’s mentorship in the last three years, I feel prepared for this opportunity. I’ve learned a great deal from him and I’m ready for the challenges ahead of me. This is an exciting time for the Chico State men’s basketball and I’m glad to be part of it,” Meador said in a statement.
Aside from Meador’s knowledge of the game, he has continued to nurture relationships with his team and the community. He has earned the respect of his colleagues throughout the years, and the community members have rallied behind the program throughout his inaugural season.
The Meador era official began on the road in Seattle with a conference crossover against GNAC/PacWest opponents Seattle Pacific and Azusa Pacific, a trip that Meador had accompanied the team on as the assistant coach. He won his first collegiate basketball game as the interim head coach against APU but ultimately split the weekend with a three-point loss to the hosting Falcons.
Their third game of the season was a difficult loss to the Urban Knights in San Francisco. Still, despite the slow start to the season, this did not carry on for long as the team went on to win 13 straight games—a Chico State men’s basketball record of consecutive wins in a single season.
By the end of the season, the ‘Cats boasted a 23-5 record and finished second in the CCAA Conference standings, with a favorable chance of earning a trip to the west regionals regardless of their finish in the conference tournament.
Under Meador’s leadership, the Wildcats picked up their first win over Cal State San Bernardino in over three years and again in the CCAA Championship semifinal.
Greg Clink (’94), who served as Chico State’s head coach for 16 seasons and brought Meador on to his staff three seasons ago, applauds the decision of Meador being his successor.
“I am extremely excited for Cevin and the Chico State men’s basketball program. I am so proud of Cevin and the job he has done this season. Cevin is an outstanding coach and leader. He values the student-athlete experience and leads with character and integrity, and I have no doubt he will lead the program forward and carry on the rich tradition of Chico State men’s basketball.” Clink said in a statement.
The Wildcats are slated to take on Central Washington in the first round of the NCAA Division II West Regional Friday in Point Loma. Meador is no stranger to the regional rounds, but this will be his first time stepping on the sideline as the head coach.
“At this point, 30 games into the season, it feels normal. When you’re the head coach, you have to make all of the decisions and they’re all yours, you have to own them. Really going into it, there’s not much difference, I feel like we are prepared for Central Washington. We have to go play and play as hard as we can, but play with some freedom,” Meador said.
Meador is in his fourth year as a member of the Chico State men’s basketball coaching staff. Since joining the team, Meador has compiled a 56-30 record along with an NCAA West Regional title, an All-American, a West Region and CCAA Players of the Year, a CCAA Freshman of the Year and 13 all-conference selections.
After reaching the conference tournament semfinals in the 2022-23 season, Meador’s third year on the coaching staff brought the Wildcats back into the spotlight. Chico State went 21-9 overall and took fourth place in the CCAA. Despite taking fourth, the Wildcats were one of four teams in the CCAA to have participate in the NCAA West Regional, reaching the title game for the second time in three years.
Meador came to Chico State as the Wildcats returned to action after sitting out the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. Meador helped coached Chico State to a 22-5 record but also clinched the program’s third NCAA West Regional title in seven years and sending the Wildcats to the NCAA Elite Eight. He also coached Malik Duffy to numerous awards, including third-team All-American, both the West Region and CCAA Players of the Year, and first-team all-conference.
Meador’s coaching experience expands to the Division I, Division II, and NAIA college levels, winning big at nearly every stop. Before joining head coach Greg Clink’s Chico State staff in July, 2021, he served a one-year stint as an assistant coach at Lewis and Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. Working under Head Coach Austin Johnson, Meador helped the Warriors post a 22-2 record in 2020–21, capture the Cascade Collegiate Conference championship, and finish as the national runner-up at the NAIA Championships.
From 2017 to 2020, Meador spent three seasons on the sidelines as the lead assistant coach at California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) rival Cal State Monterey Bay. He was involved in all aspects of the Otters’ program, including recruiting, teaching and logistics. He played a major role in fundraising, technology, and the team’s extensive community service efforts.
Meador spent the 2016–17 season as an assistant coach at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon. The Mountaineers recorded a 24-9 record, reached the NAIA Championship Tournament Sweet 16, and finished the season ranked No. 17 in the national NAIA Coaches Poll.
Meador began his collegiate coaching career as the lead student manager at Division I Boise State. For three seasons, he prepared scouting reports, edited videos for coaches, assisted in day-to-day operations, created player edits for prospective recruits, trained student managers, and assisted in game day setup.
Since 2014, Meador has coached in a variety of basketball summer camps, including Stanford, Nevada, Santa Clara, UC Davis, and Seattle Pacific, teaching the fundamentals of basketball to a variety of age groups while also serving as a role model and educating campers on good sportsmanship and camaraderie.
Meador earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Eastern Oregon in 2017.
