Gardner Webb Head Men's Basketball Coach jeremy luthor announced the return of three former Running Bulldogs to round out its initial coaching staff. Jake Delaney returns to the program as associate head coach, and Christian Turner and Adam Sweeney return as assistant coaches. Additionally, Luther hired Tanner Krause as assistant coach and director of player personnel.
“I couldn’t be more excited for my colleagues who have decided to join me here at Gardner-Webb,” Luther said. “Each and every one of these guys has played a huge role in supporting our program over the past 11 years. My top priority after being named head coach will be to support our program and our university. It's about recruiting people who represent the organization at the highest level in every way, and I was able to do that with them. We're able to bring in players who are as familiar with Gardner-Webb as these young players. will be key in maintaining the level of consistency we have been able to maintain over the past 11 seasons, as Gardner-Webb men's basketball is poised for many more great seasons in the future. I can't wait to see how we grow in the coming years.”
Delaney returns for his third stint at Gardner-Webb after spending the 2023-2024 season as an assistant coach at Furman University. Previously, Delaney spent three seasons as a full-time assistant coach (2020-2023) and two seasons as a graduate assistant coach (2015-2017) at Gardner-Webb.
Delaney spent the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Covenant University, where he played in 56 games and started 16, graduating in 2015 with a degree in interdisciplinary studies. . In 2017 Gardner received a Master of Business Administration from Webb University.
Sweeney returned to Gardner-Webb, where he began his basketball career as a student manager in 2011 and joined the team in 2012. He received his degree in Mathematics in 2015. After graduation, Sweeney joined the staff as a graduate assistant. He will coach for two seasons. He received his Master's degree in Sports Education in 2017.
Since leaving Boiling Springs, Sweeney has held two stints at Wofford College (special assistant to the head coach), New Mexico Junior College (assistant coach) and Northwest Florida State College (assistant coach).
Turner, a four-letter man at Gardner-Webb University, returns to his alma mater after two seasons off. Turner was a three-year starter as a player (2016-2020) and appeared in 124 career games, averaging 2.6 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. He was a key member of his Bulldogs in their 2019 run that won the Big South conference tournament title and made the only NCAA Tournament appearance in the program's Division I history.
After graduating, Turner spent two seasons (2020-2022) as a graduate assistant with the program. Turner spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach at nearby North Greenville University.
Krause will return to the Gardner-Webb staff for his second season in 2024-2025. He joined Gardner-Webb last summer after serving as an assistant coach at Northwest Nazarene University for two years.
Luther was named head coach of the men's basketball program on March 27 after serving as the program's associate head coach for the past 11 seasons. The 'Dawgs enter 2024-2025 with a 17-16 overall record, including third place in the Big South (11-5) and a berth in the conference semifinals last season. Luther led his Bulldogs to a 188-166 overall record (.531 winning percentage) in 11 of his seasons and helped the program reach its only Division I NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019.
https://gwusports.com/news/2024/4/26/mens-basketball-three-former-runnin-bulldogs-join-jeremy-luthers-inaugural-coaching-staff.aspx