TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – – Vice President and Director of Athletics Tiffani-Dawn Sykes named Patrick Crarey II the 15th head men’s basketball coach at Florida A&M, April 17, 2024.
“I’m delighted to welcome Coach Crarey and his family as the newest members of the FAMUly!” said Sykes. “I must thank the dedicated members of the search committee for their diligent efforts in identifying Patrick amidst a pool of interested and talented candidates. During this process, I received countless emails and messages from people who shared that they wanted a winner, and Patrick’s reputation as a winner precedes him. Hook forward to his fresh perspective and the leadership he’ll bring as we usher in a new era for FAMU Men’s Basketball.”
“Rattler Nation, I am humbled and elated to join the FAMUly as the new head coach of the men’s basketball team at the #1 public HBCU, Florida A&M University,” said Crarey. “I am extremely thankful to President Robinson and AD Sykes for entrusting me with the opportunity to lead this program. We look forward to building strong relationships with the student body, faculty, staff, alumni, and the Tallahassee community. Our program is poised to become a perennial contender in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and I can’t wait to get started.”
Crarey II comes to Florida A&M fter leading St. Thomas University to a 61-27 record, two consecutive NAIA Tournaments, and three straight winning seasons in the three seasons leading the Bobcats.
Crarey led the Bobcats to a 22-9, 10-4 record in 2023-24 and were the Sun Conference Regular Season Champions.
The Bobcats made it to the NAIA Tournament 2nd Round and finished the season ranked 21st in the nation. The Bobcats regular season success led to Crarey being named the Sun Conference Coach of the Year. Crarey and the Bobcats saw a league-high five members selected to the All-Conference teams led by Milton Matthews, Josh Taylor, and Cearius Warren on the first team, and Anthony Harris and Jordan Hernandez on the second team.
Matthews was also named to the NAIA All -American 2nd Team.
In 2022-23, Crarey led the Bobcats to a historic season, winning a program-high 26 wins, set the best home record in program history (15-1), and had the highest finish in program history finishing in the NAIA Round of 16 appearance (as NAIA Division I member). The veteran coach also set a new single-season program record with his first recruiting class as Fred Mulbah became the first Bobcat with 200 assists and set the record at 241. Dalon Dean and Milton Matthews became the new no-1 and no-2 in 3-point baskets made in a single season in 111 and 100, respectively. The duo are the only two to hit 100 in a single season. The Bobcats had three All-Conference members.
Mulbah and Matthews also notched NAIA All-American Honorable Mention honors.
In Carey’s first season at St. Thomas, the Bobcats led the Sun Conference with four All-Conference selections.
Three players from the 2021-22 team, Augustus Stone (Taiwain), Dwayne Russel (Argentina), and Jahsim Floyd (Kosovo), all netted professional contracts.
Crarey comes to St. Thomas after a decade as the men’s basketball coach at Washington Adventist University (MD) and as the Athletic Director at WAU. During his tenure at Washington Adventist, Carey led the Shock to a National Championship in 2014, was recognized as the conference coach of the year twice (ICAA/2014, All/2017), and set the program record for wins in a single season (23/2020. Carey also led the Shock to a A..I Conference Championship in 2017 Several of Carey’s former plavers have gone on to play professional basketball in various leagues, including the National Basketball Association – G-League, France, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Kosovo, and Bahrain.