ABILENE – ACU head men's basketball coach Grant McCasland began putting his stamp on the program Wednesday with the announcement that he has hired two coaches to fill out his staff.
McCasland hired former Midwestern State assistant and Wichita Falls Rider High School head coach Rob McIlhaney as his top assistant and former Utah graduate assistant Brian Burton to the same position at ACU.
"It's important to me to put together a staff that cares about our mission at ACU and knows how to win championships," McCasland said. "I'm thrilled to have these guys join our ACU Wildcat family."
McIlhaney – who played at Midwestern State before transferring to Howard Payne – was an assistant coach at MSU for former head coach Jeff Ray from 1997-98 through the 2008-09 season, helping the Mustangs to three Lone Star Conference championships.
After sitting out the 2009-10 season and going into private business, McIlhaney got back into coaching last year at Rider High School. McIlhaney led the Raiders to a 10-16 record in 2010-11 before resigning to take the ACU job.
"Coach McIlhaney is not only an outstanding basketball coach but a great friend," McCasland said. "I tried to get him to stay on board when I took over at Midwestern State two years ago and this time it worked out. He knows everything that is involved with running a successful program at this level. His experience from NCAA Division I, Division II and as a head high school coach in the state of Texas really provides a great resource for our program."
Burton is a graduate of Plano East Senior High School. He spent two years at St. Edward's before transferring to UT-Dallas where he was a two-year starter. He earned his bachelor's degree in May 2005.
In his first season at Utah (2010-11 season), Burton's primary duties included coordinating video scouting.
"Coach Burton is a big-time recruiter and really specializes in student-athlete development on and off the floor," McCasland said. "He's got a great basketball mind and will help us in taking our program to new levels."
