Men's Basketball

 Ed Cooley became the 11th head coach in the history of Fairfield University's basketball program when he accepted the position in April, 2006. In his first season at the helm, the Stags posted a 13-19 overall record and a 10-8 MAAC record. The Stags posted a seven-game win streak during the year, the longest streak since the 1985-86 campaign.

  Cooley will look to bring the same success he has had throughout his career as an assistant coach, a resume which includes six NCAA tournament appearances as well as a National Invitation Tournament (NIT) berth.
 
 Although this is his first head coaching position, Cooley's resume boasts coaching assignments at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (1994-95), Stonehill College (1995-96), University of Rhode Island (1996-97), and Boston College (1997-2006). He has served the last 10 years as an assistant coach under Al Skinner, beginning with his one-year stay at Rhode Island through his nine-year stint at Boston College.

 At Boston College, Cooley helped the Eagles post a 175-108 overall record, which included five 20-win seasons. The team captured the 2000-01 Big East championship, earning one of five NCAA tournament berths during Cooley's tenure. The Eagles also advanced to the National Invitation Tournament one time, giving the team six post-season berths in nine seasons. In 2004-05, Boston College started the season with 20 straight victories, which established a school record for consecutive wins. This past season, Boston College advanced to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) championship game against Duke University.

 A graduate of Stonehill College, Cooley began his coaching career at UMass-Dartmouth where he helped the team post a 25-4 record and a number three national ranking. He returned to his alma mater for one season, before joining Coach Skinner's staff at the University of Rhode Island for the 1996-97 campaign. With his assistance, the Rams earned their second NCAA Tournament berth in five years.

 Cooley played basketball from 1990-94 at Stonehill College. He was a three-year team captain with the Chieftains, and also captured Northeast-10 Academics Honor Roll accolades. He secured two Rhode Island High School Player of the Year awards before enrolling at Stonehill College.

 Cooley and his wife Nurys have a son Isaiah and daughter Olivia. 

 Bob Simon begins his second season as the associate head coach at Fairfield University. He spent the last six years at the University of Toledo, including three years as associate head coach.

 Simon joined the Rockets staff prior to the 2000-01 campaign as an assistant coach. He served three years as an assistant, before his promotion to associate head coach before the 2003-04 season.

 The Rockets had nothing but success during his six-year tenure, helping the program post three 20-win seasons. More importantly, Toledo captured two National Invitation Tournament berths (2001, 2004) during his stay in the Buckeye State.   The Rockets hit the national scene with wins over 14th-ranked Michigan State in 2003-04, which halted the Spartans 36-game home non-conference win streak.

 At Toledo, Simon's duties included scouting, coordinating an academic program, overseeing summer camps, and on-floor coaching.

 He was also the program's lead recruiter during his tenure. Simon helped Toledo breach new areas in recruiting, landing top-prospect players from Chicago, Dallas, Boston, and Philadelphia.
 Freshman players always made an immediate impact under Simon at Toledo. During his tenure, three freshmen earned MAC Freshman of the Year honors and another received a berth to the All-Freshman first team.

 Simon began his collegiate coaching career at Wayne State University, spending nearly a decade with the Warriors. He coached the men's team for five seasons as an associate head coach, and three seasons as an assistant coach.

 During his stay, Wayne State posted eight straight winning seasons, and reached the Division II Final Four in 1993. The Warriors captured three conference titles which led to three NCAA Tournament appearances.

 Wayne State won a school record 25 games in 1994, and came back to tie that standard in 1999. The 1994 squad posted a school-best 17-game winning streak. A key player on that 1994 team was Tony Goins, Simon's first recruit for the men's basketball program. Goins went on to become WSU's all-time leading scorer and an All-American.

 After eight seasons with the men's program, Simon accepted a new challenge when he became the head women's basketball coach at Wayne State. In his one season with the women's team, Simon turned around the program by posting 13 wins. The team earned conference tournament berth for the second time in history.

 Simon received his Bachelor of Science degree in manufacturing technology from Eastern Michigan University in 1989, and his master's degree in sports administration from Wayne State in 1997. Simon and his wife Donna have a daughter Bobbie (18) and a son Devin (17).

 David "Aki" Collins joined Head Coach Ed Cooley's staff in May, 2006 after serving three seasons as an assistant coach at Marshall University. Collins has a proven ability to recruit student-athletes who achieve success both on the basketball court as well as in the classroom.

 Collins played an instrumental role in Marshall's success on the basketball court over the past three seasons. During his stay, the Thundering Herd placed several student-athletes on Conference USA all-conference teams, including Mark Patton and Markel Humphrey last season.
 The Brooklyn native came to Marshall after three seasons as an assistant coach at Howard University where he served under head coach Frankie Allen.

 During his tenure, Collins was part of a coaching staff that turned the team into a highly-successful program. Before  his arrival at Howard, the program posted just three victories in the previous two seasons. After winning 10 games during the 2000-01 season, the Bison won 18 games in 2001-02 and advanced to the conference championship game. In three years at Howard, Collins was part of a coaching staff that averaged nearly 14 wins per season (41-48).
 Collins brought in two pre-season MEAC player of the year candidates in Aki Thomas (2002) and Kyle Williams (2003), both of whom transferred to Howard from the University of Colorado, following Collins when he made the trip back east. He also helped recruit the 2003 MEAC Player of the Year Ronnie Williams.

 Before making the move to Howard, Collins spent three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Colorado, one as a volunteer and two as a full-time assistant. His responsibilities with the Buffalos included supervising the team managers, coordinating film exchange, and participating in on-campus recruiting activities. He coached Jaquay Walls while in Boulder. Walls went on to become a second-round draft pick by the Indiana Pacers in 2000.

 He began his collegiate career at Morehouse College, before transferring to Clark University for his sophomore year. He attended LaSalle Academy in New York, where he led his team to a 26-1 record and the New York City championship as a sophomore. LaSalle earned a Top 20 pre-season ranking prior to his senior campaign.

 Collins is married to the former Ina Taylor.

 Rick Carter begins his second season as director of basketball operations at Fairfield University. He joins the program after spending the 2005-06 season at Michigan State University, working with Head Coach Tom Izzo and the Spartan program.

 Carter played a key role on the Michigan State staff, helping coordinate several aspects of the day-to-day operations. Besides planning everyday activities such as workouts and practice schedules, Carter also worked with the coaching staff with video exchange and scouting operations. Plus, he was instrumental in maintaining an academic support program for the Spartan players.

 Last season, Carter contributed to Michigan State's 22-12 season that saw the Spartans gain entry to the 2006 NCAA tournament. Three Michigan State players earned All-Big Ten honors, including Maurice Ager. Ager led the Big Ten in scoring for all games with 19.3 points per outing.
 Carter will develop similar programs at Fairfield University, serving as a liaison between the coaching staff and the University community. He looks to develop strong relationships in Fairfield County through community service projects and community outreach programs.
 He will supervise and coordinate all scouting services including video exchange. Carter will also developing an academic program in conjunction with the University's academic coordinator and other support services.

 Carter's responsibilities will encompass planning and scheduling recruiting trips and itineraries. He will supervise on-campus visits with potential student-athletes.
 Carter's ability to direct the day-to-day operations of the men's basketball program, including most of the administrative responsibilities will be an important part of the Fairfield University men's basketball program.

 Carter graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Business Management