Thanks to great sources who got HoopDirt.com out in front of this one last night…Westminster College director of athletics announced today that Norm Parrish has been hired to lead the Griffin men’s basketball program. Parrish will come to Westminster after a stint as an assistant coach at the University of Hawaii and four seasons as the director of operations at the University of Utah.
“We are excited to welcome Norm Parrish to Westminster College as our next men’s basketball head coach,” said Shay Wyatt, director of athletics. “We appreciate the interest shown by many in Westminster College and this opportunity as our search process included an impressive and qualified candidate pool. Coach Parrish brings extensive experience in all aspects of successfully managing a college basketball program. He has the experience and skills to lead our men’s basketball student-athletes as we transition into the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and begin the NCAA Division II membership process. Our coaches, staff and I look forward to welcoming Norm and supporting his efforts.”
During his four years at Utah, Parrish assisted the Utah Utes return to prominence. This past season the Utes finished 26-9 and returned to the NCAA Tournament securing the program’s first NCAA tourney win since 2005 on their way to the Sweet 16. In 2014, Utah earned a bid to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT), its first postseason appearance in five years.
“I consider it an honor and privilege to join Westminster College,” said Parrish. “I am well aware of their academic and athletic traditions and look forward to leading the men’s basketball program as they transition to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and NCAA Division II ranks. I am confident the men’s basketball program will reach a new level of success in the RMAC because of the foundation already established. My goals are simple: I want people to say that our men competed, were well prepared and represented the college in a first-class manner.”
Prior to Utah, Parrish led the men’s basketball program at Salt Lake Community College to unprecedented success averaging 22 wins over 20 seasons as head coach, including a 25-8 season in 2011 and a trip to the Region 18 championship game. In 2009, his SLCC team won the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national championship, the first in school history, along with its second consecutive Region 18 championship. Parrish received the 2009 NJCAA National Coach of the Year award for his efforts. In 2008, he coached the Bruins to a Region 18 championship and a runner-up finish at the NJCAA national championships.
Parrish will become the third coach to lead the Westminster program since it was reinstated in 1999, and only the fifth since 1956. He joins the Griffins as they begin play in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and in their first year of the NCAA Division II membership process.
A five-time Region 18 Coach of the Year, Parrish also led the Bruins to the 2000 SWAC regular-season championship. In 1994, just his third season as head coach, Parrish steered SLCC to the Region 18 tournament title and a fifth-place finish at the NJCAA national championships. Parrish finished with a career record of 447-198 (.693), eclipsing the 20-win mark 14 times.
Under Parrish’s stewardship, SLCC had 20 NJCAA All-Americans and 24 NJCAA Academic All-Americans. Nearly 50% of his players moved on to compete at the NCAA Div. I level with several now playing professionally in the NBA and internationally. In addition, many of his former student-athletes continued their academics and athletics at NCAA II, III and NAIA institutions.
Before serving as a graduate assistant at Utah, Parrish was an assistant at Nampa High School in Idaho, coaching football and basketball. Parrish played his collegiate ball at Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho) in Rexburg, and then at Northwest Nazarene College in Nampa. He received all-region honors at both institutions. Parrish attended Viewmont High School in Bountiful, Utah, where he received all-state honors in football and basketball.
Parrish earned his Bachelor’s degree in Social Science Education from Northwest Nazarene in 1988 and received a Master’s in Health, Physical Education and Recreation from Utah State in 1992. He and his wife Kaye have three sons, Travis, Matt, and Collin.
http://www.westminstergriffins.com/news/2015/8/20/MBB_0820153654.aspx
Photo Courtesy: Westminster Athletics
