Nearly four months after being introduced, Patrick Crarey is now officially a Divsion I college basketball coach at HBCU Florida A&M.
The Florida A&M Board of Trustees approved a one-year, $150k contract for Crarey, according to G. Thomas III of the Tallahassee Democrat. It starts on Aug. 8 and runs for a year.
Crarey signed a contract on April 17 following his successful tenure at St. Thomas University, where he led the team to a 61-27 record and two consecutive NAIA Tournament appearances. The deal was for three years, $150k per year.
Despite his background, the FAMU Board of Trustees (BOT) was hesitant to finalize his contract. The BOT declined to vote on the proposed deal, instead recommending a one-year agreement due to concerns about Crarey’s fit and the selection process. Trustee Kelvin Lawson expressed doubts about Crarey’s ranking among the candidates and questioned the substantial salary increase from his previous position as an NAIA coach.
Adding to the controversy, Crarey faced backlash for reportedly dismissing a large number of players inherited from the previous coach, which led to public criticism and further scrutiny of his coaching methods and decisions.
Crarey has already garnered multiple commitments – including one from Shaqir O’Neal, son of Basketball Hall of Fame Shaq – before the ink was official on his deal. Now he will look to lead a program that has experienced 17 consecutive sub .500 seasons of college basketball.