Drexel Head Men’s Basketball Coach Zach Spiker has named Jason Allison as Chief of Staff. Allison came to Drexel after spending the last eight seasons at Appalachian State.
The 2022-2023 will be his 16th season on a Division I bench. Allison will work with all aspects of the program, including recruiting, scouting, scheduling, player development and game preparation.
“We are excited to add someone of Jason’s pedigree to our basketball program,” said Spiker. “He will have a positive impact immediately with our staff, players and anyone he interacts with in and around our program. Jason is the perfect addition at this time for our program as we work towards our goal of a CAA Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance.”
Allison served in numerous roles on the Mountaineers’ men’s basketball staff, including the 2018-19 season as associate head coach. As Special Assistant to the Head Coach in 2019-20, Allison played a key role in App State’s 18 victories. The Mountaineers were ranked as one of the top defenses in the Sun Belt and posted a seven-win turnaround, which was the third highest in the nation. Allison spent his first four seasons as App State as an assistant coach, before being promoted to associate head coach for the 2018-19 season.
He played a major role in the growth of the Mountaineer hoops program. Allison recruited Ronshad Shabazz, a three-time All-Sun Belt honoree. Shabazz was just the second player in Appalachian State history to score 2,000 career points and the first player to score 500 or more points in three different seasons.
Allison was also responsible for the coaching and development of Frank Eaves. In his career, Eaves was a two-time All-Sun Belt selection and totaled 1,211 career points (24th all-time). During his senior season in 2015-16, Eaves averaged a team-high 18.7 points. Allison also recruited four starters that went on to win the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Championship, including Justin Forrest, the school’s second all-time leading scorer, and Adrian Delph.
Before arriving at Appalachian State, Allison spent nine seasons at VMI in Lexington, Va. where he was an associate coach and recruiting coordinator. The Keydets advanced to three Big South Tournament Championship game appearances in his time there and stunned the college basketball world by defeating Kentucky at Rupp Arena during the 2008-09 season. That team won a school record 24 games. In 2014, the Keydets also won more than 20 games and advanced to the semifinals of the Colleginsider.com tournament. Prior to 2014, the Keydets won 20 or more games just three times in 97 seasons.
While at VMI, Allison coached 23 players that earned All-Big South honors. This included Stan Okoye, the Big South Defensive Player of the Year, two additional Defensive Players of the Year (Travis Holmes and D.J. Covington) and a Freshman of the Year (Covington). The Keydets led the NCAA in scoring for four-straight seasons and six times overall while Allison was on the bench. Reggie Williams led the NCAA in scoring in consecutive seasons and 10 players that Allison coached at VMI eclipsed 1,000 career points, including three 2,000-point scorers. Chavis and Travis Holmes set the NCAA record for most points by a pair of brothers.
As VMI’s recruiting coordinator. Allison landed some of the region’s top prep players. He was responsible for the recruitment of Q.J. Peterson, who averaged 19 points per game and ranked 49th nationally in scoring as a true freshman in 2013-14, and Jon Elmore, who was named the 2014 West Virginia Player of the Year after averaging 31.4 points per game as a senior.
Allison played college basketball at Liberty University from 1995-98. He helped lead the Flames to a 23-9 record and the school’s first Big South regular-season title as a sophomore in 1997. A native of Lincolnton, N.C., Allison received his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Liberty in 1999.
Drexel also announced the promotion of Zack Duffy to Director of Basketball Operations. Duffy served as a staff assistant last season with the Dragons.
https://drexeldragons.com/news/2022/7/19/jason-allison-named-mens-basketball-chief-of-staff.aspx
