Following-up on yesterday’s report (FDU DIRT). The hiring of Tobin Anderson at FDU has now been made official. Here’s the release:
Fairleigh Dickinson Director of Athletics Bradford Hurlbut announced Tuesday the hiring of Tobin Anderson as the eighth head men’s basketball coach in Knights history. Anderson will be officially introduced at a press conference on Thursday, May 5 at 1 p.m.
A 1995 graduate of Wesleyan University, Anderson has served as the head coach of the St. Thomas Aquinas men’s basketball team for the past nine seasons amassing a record of 209-62 with a staggering winning percentage of .771. Leading the Spartans to seven-consecutive NCAA Division II men’s basketball tournaments, the Truro, Iowa native is a four-time Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) Coach of the Year, earning the honor in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021 and 2022.
“We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Tobin to FDU as the head men’s basketball coach,” said Hurlbut. “From the beginning of our search, he was our guy and we are ecstatic that he is joining the Knights Family! What stood out to us foremost is Tobin’s ability to build sustained championship level programs the right way. His coaching record speaks for itself and he does a terrific job of developing his student-athletes academically, athletically and socially. We look forward to welcoming Jodi, Bryce and Alexa to the banks on the Hackensack this Thursday!”
Anderson began his coaching career in Potsdam, N.Y. at Division III Clarkson University as an assistant coach. Following a two-year stint as an assistant coach at LeMoyne College, Anderson returned to Clarkson to become the head coach in 1999. In Potsdam, Anderson’s teams posted the best five-season record in program history culminating with a 2004 Liberty League regular season championship.
He then went on to Hamilton College as the head coach, replacing the legendary Tom Murphy in 2004. Anderson took the reins of Hamilton’s men’s basketball program, recording 118 wins in seven seasons. Capturing two Liberty League regular season titles with the Continentals, Anderson led the side to the 2006 NCAA Tournament round of 32, finishing the 2005-06 season with an overall record of 23-5.
Following a two-year stint as an assistant coach at Siena College, Anderson was named the Spartans’ head coach in the East Coast Conference (NCAA Division II) in 2013. The transformation of STAC into a perennial top-25 program began by turning the program around from just five wins in the season prior to his hiring to 15 in his first campaign. The program would go on to win the ECC tournament in each of the last six seasons, while boasting the ECC Rookie of the Year in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2019, along with the league’s Player of the Year in three-straight seasons from 2016-18. A three-time ECC Coach of the Year, Anderson earned the honor following back-to-back campaigns in 2015 and 2016 and again in 2021. In each of the last five seasons, Anderson’s Spartans finished first in the Empire State in wins and winning percentage among Division I and II men’s basketball programs with 131 victories and a winning percentage of 81.37, a list that includes: Buffalo, Iona, Hofstra, St. John’s (N.Y.), Stony Brook and Syracuse.
“I am honored to be named the new head coach for FDU’s men’s basketball program,” remarked Anderson. “There is tremendous potential to build a championship program and I am truly excited for the opportunity. I want to thank President [Christopher] Capuano, Athletic Director Brad Hurlbut and Senior Associate Athletic Director Jason Young for their efforts and confidence in me. My family and I are thrilled to be part of the FDU family!”
A four-year starter and two-year captain at Wesleyan, Anderson finished as one of the leading scorers in program history scoring 1,129 points with the Cardinals.
Anderson and his wife Jodi have two children, Bryce (17) and Alexa (13). He earned his Master’s in Athletic Administration from Florida State in 1996.
Quotable
“FDU hired a terrific coach in Tobin Anderson. He has been extremely successful at every stop of his career and I have no doubt he will do the same with the FDU basketball program. I’m excited to welcome him to the New Jersey college basketball scene and look forward to watching the Knights moving forward.”
– Rutgers head men’s basketball coach Steve Pikiell
“Fairleigh Dickinson has made an inspired hiring with Tobin Anderson as the new men’s basketball coach. I’ve watched the way Tobin has developed basketball teams for years, and he’s simply one of the finest teachers and leaders I’ve encountered in collegiate basketball. Tobin’s teams play fast, hard and together. Like him, they’re relentless. I am confident that Tobin will restore FDU to regular and postseason success and be a source of great pride and achievement for the university’s community.”
-Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN Senior NBA Insider
“I’m truly excited to see Tobin land a Division I job. He has proven himself over the last nine years at St. Thomas Aquinas, building a top-tier program. It’s the perfect fit for both FDU and Coach Anderson. Tobin has an eye for talent and is a terrific floor coach.”
– Gerry Oswald, Former St. Thomas Aquinas Director of Athletics
“Tobin Anderson is one of the best coaches in the country at any level. He is a proven winner, a great teacher and a great mentor to young people. This is a home run hire for FDU.”
– Fran Fraschilla, ESPN basketball analyst and former Manhattan, St. John’s (N.Y.) and New Mexico men’s basketball head coach
“FDU made an outstanding choice in Tobin Anderson to lead their men’s basketball program. Tobin Anderson built St. Thomas Aquinas College into one of the top Division II teams in the country, even beating St. John’s in an exhibition a few years ago. Tobin Anderson is a high-energy coach who’s teams play an exciting brand of up-tempo and fun basketball. Tobin has great integrity, character and morals, and his teams have a family atmosphere that a lot of people in the FDU community will want to support. Tobin will do a fabulous job rebuilding the FDU men’s basketball program.”
– Pete Gillen, CBS Sports Network College Basketball Analyst and former Xavier, Providence and Virginia head coach
