Todd Bozeman has posted one of the most dramatic turnarounds in NCAA history by turning “perennial doormat” Morgan State into a Mid-major power.
Bozeman is coming off his most successful campaign with the Bears and the most successful season in the University’s Division I history.
Under Bozeman’s guidance, the Bears captured their third consecutive regular season title and won its second straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championship. Bozeman, was named the conference's Coach of the Year for the third straight year, by leading MSU to a 15-1 MEAC record and a 27-10 overall mark last season. The Bears earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. MSU, earning a 15th seed in the tournament, ended the season with a 77-50 loss to West Virginia.
MSU recorded several non-conference victories last year including wins over Albany (69-65), UMBC (72-57), Arkansas (97-64), East Tennessee State (72-61), Manhattan (83-74) and Towson (87-80).
For the second time under his leadership, the Bears swept the conference postseason awards. Reggie Holmes, who became the school’s all-time leading scorer, was selected as the MEAC Player of the Year. Kevin Thompson, the league’s most dominant post player, was named Defensive Player of the Year and DeWayne Jackson, the league’s most accurate three-point shooter, was named Rookie of the Year. The Bears capped the season ranked No. 18 in the Mid-Major Top 25, No. 7 in the Washington Post Atlantic 11 Poll, and No. 1 in the Sheridan Black College Poll.
During the 2008-09 season Morgan State captured their second consecutive regular season title and won its first MEAC Championship since 1977. The Bears completed their magical run with a 13-3 conference record and a 23-12 overall mark. Bozeman was named the MEAC Coach of the Year and as well as being named the Hugh Durham Mid-Major Coach of the Year.
Bozeman’s Bears recorded non-conference wins over Marshall, DePaul, Maryland and defeated Towson in an ESPN BracketBusters matchup. Morgan State also completed the season ranked No. 23 in the Mid-Major Top 25 and made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in school history as a No. 15 seed.
The Bears were led by the MEAC’s top ranked point guard Jermaine “Itchy” Bolden, who wrapped the Bears’ historic season with a school record 170 assists. Marquise Kately and Reggie Holmes also played pivotal roles in the Bears success and they were named to the All- MEAC team and selected to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District First Team.
During the 2008-09 season, the Bears reached the No. 17 position in the College Insider Mid-major polls and was ranked as high as No.7 in the Washington Post Atlantic 11 poll. After a 7-8 start, the Bears reeled off an eight straight victories, equaling its longest winning streak since 1975, and closed out the regular season by winning 13 of their last 14 regular season games.
The team also demonstrated it could compete against the nation’s best teams, as it suffered four-point losses at UConn and Miami, and were outlasted by Seton Hall by 8-points earlier during the season.
Bozeman was selected the 2008 MEAC Coach of the Year. The last Morgan State coach to win the award was head coach Nathaniel Frazier in 1977.
The Bears finished with a 22- 11 regular season record, posting the most Division I victories in school history and the best overall record in over 30 years. The team, a preseason pick to finish 4th in the league, won its first-ever MEAC regular season title and advanced to the league tournament championship for the first time since 1977.
Morgan State had never won a regular season title at any level, and its only previous MEAC crown came in 1977 when it won the conference tournament en route to the Division II Final Four.
Bozeman concluded the year by taking the Bears to their first Division I postseason appearance in history when they earned a postseason tournament appearance in the NIT.
Bozeman was 35-29 in his first two seasons as the Bears’ head coach, including a sensational 21-4 mark in home games. In fact for the first time in school history the Bears finished the season unbeaten at home as they posted an impressive 12-0 mark at Hill Field House.
Morgan State featured perhaps the most dynamic roster in the league. The Bears had the MEAC’s top ranked point guard Jerrell Green, in addition to one of the top 3-point sharp-shooters in the league with sophomore Reggie Holmes. The Bears did not have a single player selected to the Preseason All-MEAC team, Bears, but finished the season with the 2008 MEAC Player of the Year Jamar Smith, MEAC Defensive Player of the Year Boubacar Coly, and All-MEAC second team selection Marquise Kately.
During the 2006-07 season Morgan State was predicted to finish 10th in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), however, Bozeman guided the Bears to a 13-18 overall record and finished tied for 3rd place in the conference in his first season at the helm. Bozeman led the Bears to the 2007 MEAC Semi-Finals and was one game away from the Championship.
Bozeman, widely regarded as one of the bright minds in basketball, began his coaching duties April 27, 2006 and became the 15th head coach in Morgan State history.
Prior to joining the Morgan State Bears, Bozeman spent two seasons as a college basketball analyst and conducted camps and clinics in South America and Africa. Bozeman also spent three seasons in the NBA as the advance scout for the Toronto Raptors where he not only scouted upcoming opponents but also coordinated and oversaw the Summer Player development program. Prior to the Raptors, Bozeman spent a season scouting for the NBA Vancouver Grizzlies, now the Memphis Grizzlies.
Bozeman also spent time strengthening his ties with college coaches and familiarized himself with the top youth players as a coach at the AAU level.
Bozeman took the college basketball world by storm after taking over the Cal program in mid-season 1993; he led the Golden Bears to an 11-2 finish and a surprise berth in the NCAA Tournament; including an upset of defending national champion Duke and a Sweet 16 berth to cap Cal’s best NCAA Tournament run since 1960.
As the head coach of the University of California-Berkeley, Bozeman led the Golden Bears to three NCAA Tournament bids in four years, and became the youngest coach to ever reach the NCAA “Sweet Sixteen”. Bozeman’s Bears also became the first school in conference history to win three straight games over UCLA in Pauley Pavilion, and was the first school to take back-to-back games over Arizona in McKale Center in more than a decade.
In four seasons as a head coach, he led Cal to a 63-35 record (64.3 pct.) and guided the Golden Bears to three top 4 finishes in the Pac- 10. Bozeman was instrumental in building Cal into one of the elite team, but finished the season with the 2008 MEAC Player of the Year Jamar Smith, MEAC Defensive Player of the Year Boubacar Coly, and All-MEAC second team selection Marquise Kately.
During the 2006-07 season Morgan State was predicted to finish 10th in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), however, Bozeman guided the Bears to a 13-18 overall record and finished tied for 3rd place in the conference in his first season at the helm.
Bozeman led the Bears to the 2007 MEAC Semi-Finals and was one game away from the Championship.
Bozeman, widely regarded as one of the bright minds in basketball, began his coaching duties April 27, 2006 and became the 15th head coach in Morgan State history.
Prior to joining the Morgan State Bears, Bozeman spent two seasons as a college basketball analyst and conducted camps and clinics in South America and Africa. Bozeman also spent three seasons in the NBA as the advance scout for the Toronto Raptors where he not only scouted upcoming opponents but also coordinated and oversaw the Summer Player development program. Prior to the Raptors, Bozeman spent a season scouting for the Vancouver Grizzlies, who are now the Memphis Grizzlies.
Bozeman also spent time strengthening his ties with college coaches and familiarized himself with the top youth players as a coach at the AAU level.
Bozeman took the college basketball world by storm after taking over the Cal program in mid-season 1993; he led the Golden Bears to an 11-2 finish and a surprise berth in the NCAA Tournament; including an upset of defending national champion Duke and a Sweet 16 berth to cap Cal’s best NCAA Tournament run since 1960.
As the head coach of the University of California-Berkeley, Bozeman led the Golden Bears to three NCAA Tournament bids in four years, and was the youngest coach to ever reach the NCAA “Sweet Sixteen”. Bozeman’s Bears also became the first school in conference history to win three straight games over UCLA in Pauley Pavilion, and was the first school to take back-to-back games over Arizona in McKale Center in more than a decade.
In four seasons as a head coach, he led Cal to a 63-35 record (64.3 pct.) and guided the Golden Bears to three top 4 finishes in the Pac- 10. Bozeman was instrumental in building Cal into one of the elite programs in NCAA basketball and nurtured the development of future NBA stars Jason Kidd, Lamond, Murray, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Sean Marks, Ed Gray, Tremaine Fowlkes, Michael Stewart and the college basketball career of the NFL’s Tony Gonzales.
Bozeman arrived at Cal in 1990 after spending two seasons as an assistant to Perry Clark at Tulane (1988-90). While a member of the Tulane staff, Bozeman played a major role in the rebuilding of the Green Wave basketball program, which was reinstated after a four- year disbandment. He spent a total of two seasons at the New Orleans school, the first of which he spent the majority of his time on the recruiting trail, luring an impressive group of prospects into the fold.
The fruits of Bozeman’s labor were quickly realized as the Green Wave shocked most college basketball observers during their first two seasons since the program was reinstated. Tulane proved to be quite competitive during that first season back, including a stunning upset of then 10th-ranked Memphis State among its victories. The Greenies followed that effort by posting a winning slate, going 16-14, while posting wins over five squads that went on to postseason play.
Leading the way for Tulane was a pair of Bozeman’s prize recruits, Anthony Reed and Kim Lewis, who were each named Metro Conference Rookie of the Year in 1990 and 1991, respectively.
Bozeman began his coaching career upon graduating from the University of Rhode Island in 1987, serving as an assistant coach at Potomac (Md.) Senior High School for two seasons. he then rose quickly through the ranks, moving on to George Mason University as a part-time assistant under coach Ernie Nestor, before accepting a position at Tulane.
Bozeman lettered four years as a guard at Rhode Island under coaches Brenden Malone and Claude English. He was named the Rams Most Valuable Player as a sophomore in 1983, before an ankle injury slowed him during his final two seasons at the school.
Bozeman was born December 5, 1963 in Washington, DC and was raised in Forestville, Maryland. Bozeman and wife TeLethea reside in Bowie, MD with his son Blake(18), daughter Brianna(17) and his nephew Okoye(19).
