Army has hired Cornell assistant coach Zach Spiker to replace Jim Crews as the Black Knights’ head coach, according to a university release.
After firing Crews in late September, Army moved quickly to replace him because the 2009-10 season is set to begin in a little more than a month. Spiker comes to West Point to take his first head coaching job after working at Cornell as an assistant for the past five years. He also has worked with Michigan coach John Beilein as an administrative assistant.
While at Cornell, Spiker helped the Big Red establish themselves as a force in the Ivy League. The team has been the class of the conference in recent years, winning back-to-back Ivy League titles.
The Black Knights hope Spiker can repeat that type of makeover at Army. The team is one of the most unsuccessful programs in Division I and has not had a winning season in 25 years.
