SUNDAY SPORTS BRUNCH CBU welcomes Crehan as men’s soccer coach
Enda Crehan has a brand new college men's soccer coaching opportunity.
The native of Ireland is coming to Christian Brothers University after spending the previous three seasons at Ferrum College in Virginia.
“For me, it's an honor to be the head coach of any university,” he said, “but it's especially an honor being the CBU coach with such a rich tradition in athletics and academics.”
It's a step up from Division III'S Old Dominion Athletic Conference to Division II and the Bucs' affiliation with the Gulf South Conference.
“The Gulf South has a good reputation,” said Crehan. “I'll be very excited to get into it.”
Crehan already has one GSC connection, as a former Colaiste Ide teammate, Matthew Thorne, is the coach at Auburn Montgomery. And, prior to arriving at UAM, Thorne coached at West Alabama.
Crehan and Thorne made their way to Memphis 17 years ago, when Colaiste Ide took part in the John Talley Showcase and Shootout, held annually at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex.
“We were fresh pups looking for a new adventure,” said Crehan, 35. “And they're still bringing teams from Ireland. It's obviously a little bit of tradition with Irish people coming to Memphis. They start their journey here and have then gone on to coach around the country or become assistants and club directors.
“I'm really humbled to be the next coach. First and foremost, I'm just really grateful to the president of CBU (Jack Shannon), athletic director (Brian Summers) and all the people there for giving me the opportunity.”
He's replacing Clint Browne, who was the school's all-time winningest coach in his 16 seasons with the Bucs. Browne is now at Hutchison.
“The foundation and success that Clint Browne had with our program made this a highly desirable Division II job,” said Summers in a release. “Coach Crehan was clearly hungry to lead our program, and his team's athletic and academic success were stellar.”
All of Crehan's head coaching experience has taken place in Virginia. Before his 29-22-2 record and three consecutive winning seasons at Ferrum, he compiled a 40-16-6 mark in three years at Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville.
“For me, as a coach, it's about getting kids that are both good students and good athletes,” Crehan said. “I like for my teams to work hard and be defensively organized. I've had colleges in the past that have had a lot of South American and European influence, so you have a little bit of grit; you have that flair.”
There were just five seniors on the 2019 CBU roster. The Bucs finished 7-9-1 overall and 5-5-1 in conference play. The team's top two scorers were junior Maxi Galizzi and sophomore Ivan Segui, who combined for 11 goals and 27 points.
“I love to work,” said Crehan, “so I'm ready to go. Ready to get to the university.”
College opportunities and in memoriam
Germantown resident and St. Mary's tennis standout Eesha Gudiseva is one of four new signees at Ole Miss. According to tennisrecruting.com, Gudiseva is a four-star recruit. As a sophomore, she advanced to the TSSAA Division II-AA singles championship. … Former Lake Cormorant star Brayland Skinner will be making the baseball jump from Northwest Mississippi Community College to Mississippi State. In two seasons with the Rangers, Skinner batted .366 with 64 hits and 28 stolen bases. He becomes the fifth NWCC baseball player to join the Southeastern Conference in the last two years. … Former Memphis Riverkings general manager Jim Riggs died on Wednesday at his South Carolina home. The Pittsburgh native was instrumental in bringing the Central Hockey League team to the Mid-south Coliseum for its inaugural season in 1992-93. He spent a decade with the now-defunct ‘Kings organization.
Sunday Sports Brunch is a weekly look at movers, shakers and newsmakers on the Memphis sports scene, from youth level to the pros. If you have an item of interest, please contact Chris Van Tuyl at christopher.vantuyl@commercialappeal.com