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Young has been named the 13th head coach of the Fairfield University men’s basketball program after most recently serving three years as an assistant at Rutgers. He takes over from Sydney Johnson, who had five winning seasons in eight years, but led Fairfield to just a 9-22 record this season.
Paul Schlickmann, the Director of Athletics at Fairfield University, said that Young shone in every aspect of the interview process and clearly proved to be the right fit for the job.
"He emerged at every step of our thorough search process as the individual with the depth and breadth of experience to lead our program,” he said. “Jay has a stellar reputation for operating with integrity and an authentic approach to the recruitment and overall development of young men."
A 1986 graduate of Marist College with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, Young has previous head coaching experience at the University of New Haven in Division II and at Newbury in Massachusetts, a juco program. While at New Haven, Young took the helm of a team that had one winning season in eight years, leading them to back-to-back postseason bids in 2003 and 2004.
Young was a key member of the Scarlet Knights’ coaching staff, helping them to their best ever finish in the Big Ten this season, including wins over nationally ranked conference rivals in Ohio State and Iowa. Schlickmann noted that Young has also proven his mettle in recruiting, bringing the highest-ranked freshman class in program history to Rutgers.
While at Rutgers, Young was tasked with coordinating the Scarlet Knights’ defense, which showed marked improvements in his three seasons there.
“He has coached at every level of college basketball and has been the common denominator of great success at each of those stops,” Schlickmann added. "Jay is a winner and will be relentless in his approach to achieve excellence in every aspect of our program. I am confident his passion and energy will create a unique identity for Stags men's basketball that will resonate with our community."
Following the announcement of his hiring, Young issued a statement saying he is “humbled and honored to be the next head men’s basketball coach at Fairfield University.
"I would like to thank President Nemec and Director of Athletics Paul Schlickmann for all of their confidence and support. Fairfield's blend of academic and athletic excellence makes this truly a special opportunity for me. It is with great enthusiasm that I look forward to joining the Fairfield community."
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