Men’s Basketball Coach Ready to Fulfill Director of Athletics
By John Syms, staff writer
*Originally Published September 18th, 2024
DP Harris, the head men’s basketball coach for the Bearcats, was named the Saint Vincent College (SVC) director of athletics on Jul. 30.
Previously, Harris was named the interim athletic director in June of 2023, after former athletic director Father Myron Kirsh announced his retirement due to an ongoing illness. On Sept. 8, Kirsh passed away at the age of 78. Kirsh served as the director of athletics for 50 years, from 1983 to 2023.
Harris served as the men’s basketball coach from 2003 to 2019 and returned as the head coach for the Bearcats in 2022. From 2019 to 2021, He was the head men’s basketball coach of Saint Thomas University in Miami, Florida.
The Bearcats men’s basketball coach additionally feels comfortable being the head coach and director of athletics at the same time. “I have always had multiple roles and it's something that has worked seamlessly, and Fr. Myron, in true spirit, for 20 plus years had taught accounting here [SVC], and was the athletic director,” Harris said.
Harris was named the Presidents Athletic Conference (PAC) men’s basketball coach of the year twice, won four PAC championships, and has a coaching record of 392-159
Harris said it was a real honor to be named the director for athletics for SVC, after he was first the associate athletic director from 2007-2019. “It is an opportunity to serve our students. When I was coaching basketball, I was singularly focused just on basketball, and now, getting to know all the athletes is really fun, and it’s humbling because there is a lot of passion in all of our sports,” Harris said.
When Harris was named interim director of athletics at SVC, the men’s cross-country team captured their ninth PAC title in the fall of 2023, and the wrestling team won their first PAC title in the winter of 2024. According to Harris, SVC has been booming in athletic recruitment and student population, and he hopes to continue the success of student athletes on campus.
Not only that, but one of his priorities is student athletes who don’t perform well academically. “For the most part, we had the most student athletes in the history of the school to be on the honor roll, and we led the PAC this year (2024), and we number one in the conference in academics,” Harris said.
In the spring of 2024, 113 student athletes from SVC were named on the dean's list. Harris is fine with students coming here to SVC to compete in sports, but he also wants students to focus on their academics. “For me, we will have failed every one of our student athletes if we have brought them here to play sport, and at for front of it, you are here to be a student athlete and academic student,” Harris said.
As of Sept. 9, SVC athletics is looking sharp, as the men’s cross-country team is favored to win the PAC this year, while the women’s soccer team starts off their season 3-1, and the women’s cross-country team placing first as a team at the PAC preview meet on Sept. 7.
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