Billy Kennedy with a good start to his Texas A&M tenure

Billy Kennedy has taken the route less traveled in his coaching career.

Before taking the Texas A&M job vacated by Mark Turgeon's move to Maryland this spring, he worked 12 different collegiate jobs. His wasn't until his eighth season as an assistant coach that he spent two consecutive years on the same staff. (Ironically, one of those stops was as a member of the Aggie staff in 1990-1991.)

Now that he has become the latest Murray State head coach -- following Mark Gottfried and Mick Cronin -- to get a high-major job, Kennedy is hoping to stay there. And over the weekend, Kennedy took major steps towards ensuring that his tenure would be a successful one.

It started on Friday when J-Mychal Reese, a sharp-shooting lefty combo-guard out of Bryan, TX, committed to the Aggies. He currently ranks 46th in our 2012 Consensus Recruiting Rankings.

Reese made headlines a few months back when it was discovered that his father -- who also happens to be the head coach at Bryan HS -- was being offered assistant coaching positions at the schools that were recruiting "J-Mike". Brent Zwerneman broke the news that the elder Reese was resigning his position at Bryan HS and will be offered a spot on Kennedy's staff.

(The NCAA has instituted legislation preventing package deals, making a rule that there must be a two-year window between the hiring on a non-assistant staff member and the signing of a recruit that he was associated with in high school. Momo Jones couldn't transfer to St. John's because Moe Hicks, who coached him in high school, in the Director of Basketball Operations with the Johnnies. But John Reese will be hired as an assistant coach, making this package deal acceptable.)

Reese's brother also happens to be a student-manager for the Aggies, which surely played a role in his decision to head to college station.

Reese wasn't the only get for Kennedy. Kendrick Nunn, a top 50 scoring guard from the class of 2013 and a Chicago native, committed to play for Texas A&M on Sunday. Nunn's recruitment didn't have the intrigue that Reese's did, but according to Jeff Borzello of CBSSports.com, Nunn's "play in the spring and summer cemented his spot amongst the top guards in the country".

Kennedy still has a long way to go filling out the 2012 and 2013 recruiting classes, but the weekend's commitments are a good start.

With Khris Middleton and David Loubeau headlining a talented crop of returnees for the 2011-2012 season, Kennedy will have every chance in the world to continue the success Turgeon and Billy Gillispie had in the program.


Some video of J-Mychal Reese:



And Kendrick Nunn:


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A lot to like about the Billy Kennedy hire

It looks like the coaching carousel may, finally, be coming to a close this off-season.

Over the weekend, the news became official that Billy Kennedy of Murray State would be taking over for the departed Mark Turgeon at Texas A&M.

For Aggie fans, the hiring of Kennedy is not a blockbuster. Its not Buzz Williams, the current Marquette head coach with ties all over the state of Texas. He was too expensive to lure away from the new contract he signed with the Golden Eagles. Its not Josh Pastner, either. Pastner grew up coaching AAU basketball in Houston, but his current gig with Memphis is a better job than A&M.


Kennedy is not a sexy hire, so to speak. But it is a smart hire, and will likely end up being a winning hire.

Kennedy, who was an assistant with the Aggies in the 90's, was a winner at Murray State. He went 107-53 in his five seasons there, including a 31-win season in 2009-2010 when the Racers knocked off No. 4 seed Vanderbilt in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He coaches a brand of basketball that is perfectly suited to the personnel the Aggies have returning. Kennedy preaches defense, a controlled pace, offensive execution, and a balanced scoring attack.

Sounds pretty similar to Turgeon, doesn't it? And, for that matter, it sounds pretty similar to the guy that Turgeon replaced -- Billy Gillispie.

And with five of their top seven returning -- including Khris Middleton, the Aggies' leading scorer and star perimeter player, and David Loubeau -- Kennedy won't be walking into a situation where the cupboard is empty.

On another note, VCU is widely considered the premiere breeding ground for future head coaches. Jeff Capel went from VCU to Oklahoma. His replacement, Anthony Grant, is now the head coach at Alabama. Shaka Smart took VCU to the Final Four this past season, opting to remain at the school instead jumping at one of the many high-major offers he received after the reason.

Murray State isn't that far behind, however. Mark Gottfried made his name with the Racers before heading on to Alabama. Mick Cronin did the same before heading to Cincinnati, where he has the Bearcats back near the top of the Big East. Now Billy Kennedy is headed to Texas A&M.

It will be interesting to see who Murray State gets next.
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