Charlie Henry Officially With Georgia Southern

Former Alabama assistant basketball coach Charlie Henry was unveiled as Georgia Southern University's new head men's basketball coach.

Georgia Southern announced Henry as their head coach on March 14.  After a dismal campaign in which they ended 17-16 overall and 9-9 in the conference, Henry will be taking over a program that hasn't participated in the NCAA tournament since 1992. Henry is eager to restore the program to its former status as one of the best in the Sun Belt Conference, which is exciting for him and his family.

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Henry played a crucial role in Alabama's success this season as the Crimson Tide made the NCAA Tournament as the top overall seed with a 29-5 record. Alabama won both the regular season and tournament titles in the Southeastern Conference. Henry was mostly in charge of the Tide's defense, which led the nation in field goal percentage defense (.372), third in 3-point % defense (.281), and first in rebounding (44.4/gm) and defensive rebounds (31.6/gm).

Henry will bring his expertise not only from working with Alabama head coach Nate Oats and having a lot of success but also from his tenure as a head coach with the Windy City Bulls, the Chicago Bulls' NBA G-League affiliate. Between 2015-17, Henry was an assistant coach for the Bulls.

Prior to Henry, the head coach was former Texas Tech assistant coach Brian Burg. GSU chose not to renew his contract after this season, and the search for a replacement coach began. Jared Benko, Athletic Director at Georgia Southern, was thrilled about the program's future with Henry guiding the way.

"I can't tell you how excited we are to welcome Charlie, his wife Teisha, son Nash, and daughter Dixie Grace to the Georgia Southern Family," said Benko. "From the outset, we were committed to finding the best coach and developer of young men to lead Georgia Southern to new heights.

Charlie's name was frequently mentioned nationwide as one of college basketball's most elite minds and coaches. He has been instrumental in Alabama's success over the past four years, culminating with a No. 1 seed in this year's NCAA Tournament. His two years as an assistant coach in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and his two years as the head coach of the NBA G League Windy City Bulls uniquely prepared Charlie for this role. Please welcome Charlie and his family to Eagle Nation."

Many others wished Henry well and praised him, including Oats, ESPN's Jay Bilas, Alabama AD Greg Byrne, and others.

"Charlie has been more than ready to become a head coach, and I think Georgia Southern made a terrific choice in hiring him to lead their men's basketball program. I've known Charlie for almost 15 years, and he has one of the sharpest basketball minds out there. He is also a tremendous leader who knows how to develop players. I've personally grown a lot as a coach working with him. He is helped build our program at Alabama into what it is today and oversees our defense, which has finished in the nation's top three most efficient defenses in two of the last three years. I do not doubt that he will do an outstanding job. On top of all that, he is a great family man that will represent Georgia Southern University and the community well. I couldn't be happier for Charlie, his wife Teisha, and their children, Nash and Dixie Grace," said Oats.

"Charlie is an outstanding hire by Georgia Southern and Jared Benko. Charlie has been with Nate Oats from day one in Tuscaloosa and he has been a tremendous part of our success," said Byrne.

"Charlie Henry is an inspired choice for Georgia Southern. He is a very smart tactician with both NBA and high-level college experience, spearheading Alabama's top-ranked defense. And, Charlie knows the offense, proper use of analytics, and recruiting just as well. Alabama is one of the most innovative and creative offenses in the game. I'm really excited to see Charlie Henry and Georgia Southern team up," said Bilas.

He will seek to revitalize a program and a fan base that has lost interest in the program, and he is looking forward to the new arena that will be built for Georgia Southern in a few years. Alabama fans are excited to watch how Henry performs for the Eagles next season.