Former Heisman Trophy winner and first-round NBA draft pick Charlie Ward is set to become the coach at Florida A&M, sources told ESPN.
Ward is finalizing a deal to become the next coach at FAMU, according to sources. The school’s board has a meeting scheduled at 3 p.m. ET Wednesday, when there’s an agenda item to approve the contract of a new men’s basketball coach.
Ward, 54, is the 1993 Heisman Trophy winner at Ward, 54, is the 1993 Heisman Trophy winner at Florida State and played in the NBA from 1994 to 2005. He played primarily for the New York Knicks, but he did finish his career playing for both the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets.
Ward brings a diverse resume of basketball coaching experience, which includes time with the Rockets for two seasons as an assistant coach in 2005-06 and 2006-07, a high school head coach locally in Tallahassee and with USA Basketball.
Ward becomes the highest-profile coach at an HBCU men’s program in the country, as he joins Mo Williams, the coach at Jackson State, as former NBA players coaching in Division I at an HBCU.
Ward takes over a challenging job, as FAMU hasn’t reached the NCAA tournament since 2007 and has appeared in three tournaments in school history.
FAMU went 14-17 this season under coach Patrick Crarey, who left after one year. The school’s last winning season came in its NCAA tournament season of 2006-07. Five coaches since have worked there without finding a way to achieve a winning record since that year.
Ward will provide a jolt for the program, as he’s one of the biggest names in the area at the Tallahassee-based school from his playing and coaching career.
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