University of Pittsburgh men’s basketball head coach Jeff Capel announced his coaching staff Wednesday afternoon with Tim O’Toole (associate head coach) and Jason Capel (assistant coach) joining the Panther program. In addition, Capel has named Jason Richards director of student-athlete development and Brian Regan director of basketball operations.
“One of the biggest lessons I have learned in coaching is to surround yourself with great people,” said Jeff Capel. “I am excited about the makeup of this staff. Tim is a high-energy coach with terrific recruiting connections and a great basketball mind. Jason shares those qualities as well and is obviously someone who immediately understands me and my vision of how to build a program. Each of these coaches will serve as great representatives for the University of Pittsburgh and will be excellent mentors to the student-athletes we recruit, develop and lead.”
O’Toole brings over 25 years of collegiate experience, including eight seasons as a head coach at Fairfield (1998-2006). He has spent the past two seasons at Cal and has coaching stints at Stanford (2013-16), Syracuse (2012-13, 1991-95), Seton Hall (1997-98), Duke (1995-97), Iona (1990-91), Army (1989-90) and Fordham (1987-89) on his resume. O’Toole, the 2004 MAAC Coach of the Year, compiled a 112-121 record at his alma mater. Honored as the Fairfield Male Athlete of the Year in 1987, O’Toole was a four-year letterwinner in basketball, leading the Stags to a pair of MAAC championships and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. He also competed for the lacrosse team, going undefeated in 1986-87.
Jason Capel, the younger brother of Jeff, returns to the college sidelines after spending the past four seasons as a college basketball analyst for ESPNU and the ACC Network/Raycom Sports. He spent two years as an analyst following his playing career before getting into the coaching ranks as an assistant coach at Appalachian State for the 2009-10 season. He was named head coach of the Mountaineers prior to the 2010-11 season and compiled 53 wins over the next four seasons. Capel, a McDonald’s All-America and top-5 player coming out of high school, led North Carolina in scoring (15.6 ppg.), rebounds (8.6 rpg.) and steals (29) as a senior. A two-time All-ACC selection, he helped guide the Tar Heels to the 2000 Final Four and was a Wooden Award candidate in 2002.
Richards will enter his eighth season with the program and serve as director of student-athlete development. In his new capacity, he will assist the coaching staff in film breakdown, practice planning and game analytics as well as preparing student-athletes for personal, academic and athletic development success. Richards scored over 1,000 career points at Davidson, while helping the Wildcats to three NCAA Tournament appearances and three Southern Conference Tournament Championships. He led the NCAA in assists (8.1 apg.) as a senior and was named to the NCAA Tournament All-Midwest Regional team.
Regan returns to the basketball staff after spending the previous two years as Pitt’s director of event management and camps and clinics. He joined Jamie Dixon’s staff as video coordinator in 2007 and was the program’s director of basketball operations from 2008-2016. Regan spent five years as an assistant coach at Colgate (2002-07) prior to coming to Pitt and had coaching stops at Assumption College (1999-2002), Slippery Rock (1994-99), LaRoche College (1993-94) and Robert Morris (1990-93).
“Jason and Brian bring great value to the staff as individuals with a terrific understanding of the University of Pittsburgh and the city,” Capel added. “Jason was a terrific player at Davidson with an outstanding feel for the game. He has a bright future in this industry and will be an invaluable member of the staff. Brian brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the operations position. He will be an important figure as we transition here to the University of Pittsburgh and begin to reestablish ourselves as one of the premier programs in the country.”
