WVU got who they targeted in Brown for strength coach

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When Andy Kettler left his post as the West Virginia strength and conditioning coach after ten seasons, head coach Bob Huggins had a major hole to fill.

The Ohio native had served as an integral piece of the puzzle during his time with the Mountaineers and earned a reputation as one of the best in the nation. The Mountaineers have become known for their physical brand of play and the work in the weight room has had a lot to do with that.

So when it came time to find his replacement it was only fitting that Kettler had a recommendation as to who Huggins should target to fill it when he was asked.

It just so happened that two others Huggins trusts in the industry in Mickey Marotti, who served as the strength coach at Cincinnati and now works at Ohio State, and Scott Greenawalt, who was on staff at Cincinnati and Kansas State and now serves in the strength and conditioning role at South Carolina, had the exact same name to suggest for the opening.

That name was Shaun Brown, who was in his fifth year at Minnesota but had over 30 years of experience in the industry including eight at the professional level with the Toronto Raptors and the Boston Celtics. Brown had spent time with USC and Virginia as well during his career.

“I spoke with Mickey and the first name out of his mouth was Shaun. I called Scott and he said ‘you’ve got to get Shaun Brown. You’ve got to get him’. I called Andy and he said it,” Huggins said.

And that’s important because Huggins is a firm believer in hiring people who know that they’re doing as well as taking advice from those that do as well.

“As I get older I realize what I don’t know,” he said.

Needless to say West Virginia got who they wanted.

Brown was named as the next strength and conditioning coach May 1 and was complimentary of the program as well as the work that Kettler did during his time in Morgantown.

“West Virginia's style of play, especially with Press Virginia, is how I got my start in this and it certainly fits my niche. Andy has established a heckuva culture here, and I anticipate this transition being as smooth as any place that I've been. I don't have to reinvent the wheel because I know these guys are accustomed to working hard and putting in time. The facilities are certainly top-notch, and I'm looking forward to getting there and working with the team and the staff,” he said.

Because of that professional experience Brown has worked with 21 players who were selected in the NBA Draft and eight NBA All-Stars including Chris Bosh, Vince Carter, Jamaal Magloire and Paul Pierce.

The position is important for a number of reasons but one of those is the fact that the strength staff spends more time with the players than the coaches do because of NCAA guidelines. That is especially important during the summer months when Brown spends times with the players getting them prepared for the course of the season by working in the weight room.

“Their time off when the guys aren’t here which is only a couple weeks over the summer,” Huggins said.

And the Mountaineers got their man for the job.

“We got who we targeted,” Huggins said.

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