Princeton's Brian Earl named Big Red men's basketball coach

Brian Earl
Brian Earl

Brian Earl, who helped lead the Princeton University men’s basketball team back to national prominence as an assistant coach and was a record-setting player for the Tigers in the 1990s, has been named the Robert E. Gallagher ’44 Head Coach of Cornell Men’s Basketball.

The announcement was made April 18 by Andy Noel, the Meakem*Smith Director of Athletics and Physical Education.

Earl, 39, becomes the 22nd head coach in school history. He replaces Bill Courtney, whose contract was not renewed after six seasons directing the Big Red program.

“Brian Earl was chosen from a large pool of very qualified candidates to lead the Cornell basketball program to sustained success on the court and in the classroom,” Noel said. “Brian’s experience as a coach and record-setting player in the Ivy League has provided him with the skills and knowledge necessary to achieve success at Cornell.”

Earl coached at his alma mater the previous nine seasons and was elevated to associate head coach in 2015-16. He was instrumental in turning around a program that won just six games, two in Ivy League play, the year before his arrival.

Since 2009-10, when the Tigers finished second to a Cornell team that advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16, Princeton has compiled an overall win-loss record of 143-69, including 72-26 in the Ivies. The Tigers finished no lower than third in the league in those seven seasons and had five 20-win seasons.

Earl coordinated Princeton’s defensive strategy the past four seasons, helping the Tigers lead the league in scoring defense in 2012-13, allowing just 58.4 points per game.

The Tigers were invited to the postseason five times in Earl’s nine seasons, including the NCAA Tournament in 2011. Sixteen players earned All-Ivy League honors during Earl’s tenure, with Ian Hummer (2013) becoming the first Princeton player since Earl himself (1999) to be voted Ivy Player of the Year.

Earl was the 1998-99 Ivy League Player of the Year and helped Princeton to 95 wins in his four seasons, still an Ivy League record. Those teams went 51-5 in Ivy League play, including perfect conference seasons in 1997 and 1998.

Earl graduated with 281 3-pointers, the Ivy League career record until Cornell’s Ryan Wittman ’10 surpassed him with 377 from 2006-10. Earl scored 12 points per game for his career and finished No. 5 on Princeton’s all-time scoring list, with 1,428 points.

After graduating with a degree in economics in 1999, Earl played professionally for three years, including stints in Germany and England. After four years as an account executive for Sallie Mae, he returned to Princeton to join former teammate Sydney Johnson’s coaching staff.

Media Contact

Melissa Osgood