5 things to know about Micah Shrewsberry’s latest hires for Penn State men’s basketball
New Penn State men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry’s staff is nearly complete. His final two on-court assistant hires have been made, along with multiple other key personnel.
David “Aki” Collins and Mike Farrelly will join Adam Fisher as on-court assistants that are permitted — by NCAA rule — to go on the road to recruit. They’ll be joined on staff by Talor Battle as assistant to the head coach, Nick Colella as chief of staff, and — reportedly — Brian Snow as director of recruiting.
Here are five things to know about the latest additions to the staff.
Recruiting territory expands
Penn State found a lot of success by recruiting Philadelphia well when Pat Chambers was in charge, and that should continue under Shrewsberry. The head coach was the lead recruiter for eastern Pennsylvania combo guard Jameel Brown, who was committed to Purdue until Shrewsberry left, and has hired assistants who can maintain the relationships built in the southeastern corner of the state.
Fisher helped land former Miami guard Lonnie Walker IV, from Reading, when he was with the Hurricanes, and has deep connections in the state after spending time at Penn State and Villanova. Farrelly also brings his own connections to the area as a former player at St. Joe’s under Phil Martelli, and should help out in New York after spending eight years at Hofstra.
Shrewsberry’s own connections in the Midwest could even help expand the team’s footprint beyond the region.
Farrelly adds important experience
Shrewsberry joins the program as a first-time head coach but he will have a staff member to turn to for advice if he needs it. Farrelly spent the 2020-21 season as the acting head coach at Hofstra after Joe Mihalich went on medical leave. He led the team to a 13-10 record and an appearance in the Colonial Athletic Association tournament semifinals this season. He achieved that despite enduring a COVID-19-related pause during February, a few weeks before the postseason began.
The new Penn State assistant also spent a season as Hofstra’s associate head coach and was a candidate to be named the team’s head coach after Mihalich transitioned to a new role at the university. Farrelly brings that experience along with a high level of pedigree after being named the No. 2 men’s basketball assistant in the CAA by Stadium’s Jeff Goodman following the 2019-20 season.
Collins provides unique perspective
Farrelly and Fisher have spent most of their recent years on the sidelines in college basketball, but the same can’t be said for Collins. The assistant spent only one of his past six seasons with a college basketball program, and it wasn’t as an assistant coach. He was the director of basketball operations at the University of New Mexico for the 2020-21 season, but it’s the five seasons of work before he went to New Mexico that could provide a unique perspective.
Collins was an amateur scout with the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2015-20, and should be able to use his time as an evaluator in the NBA to help identify talent at the high school level. Of course, he also brings plenty of experience on the bench as an assistant. Collins coached at Marquette from 2008-12 and Memphis from 2012-15 before heading to the NBA.
Snow brings deep recruiting connections
While Penn State has not yet confirmed the hire, Snow would bring valuable experience as the team’s new director of recruiting, even if he’s never worked for a college program. Snow would take on the role after spending over a decade in the recruiting industry, including time at 247Sports, where he worked as a national recruiting analyst. His experience should open the door to relationships in areas across the country for the Nittany Lions, but especially in the Midwest where Snow maintained a focus in his time as a recruiting analyst.
Few teams across the country will have staff members with the type of connections that a national recruiting analyst can bring to the table. Time will tell if the hire will be successful, but — on the surface — it should cause an immediate uptick in recruiting.
Battle and Colella provide continuity, familiarity
The transition away from a coaching staff that spent nearly a decade in charge can be difficult, but Shrewsberry will hold over at least two staff members who can help with that change. Colella and Battle were members of the last Penn State team to make the NCAA Tournament in 2011 and bring a sense of continuity to the staff. Colella, in particular, could help with the transition after spending the past eight seasons as a member of the basketball staff. He was the director of basketball operations in the 2020-21 season but spent the five seasons prior as the team’s director of on-campus recruiting.
Battle’s presence will help as arguably one of the best players to ever take the floor for the Nittany Lions. He returned to campus after he was hired by Chambers prior to the 2020-21 season as an assistant coach. His role change may require taking a step back for the short term but could help him become more well-positioned for a future assistant role after joining the team without any prior coaching experience.
This story was originally published April 20, 2021 at 11:29 AM.
