Ryan Marks is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach. He is the head men's basketball coach at the

University of St. Francis The University of St. Francis (USF) is a private Franciscan university with its main campus in Joliet, Illinois. It enrolls nearly 3,200 students at locations throughout the country with about 1,300 students at its main campus. History Early h ...

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...

, a position he had held since 2013. Mark served in the same capacity at

Southern Vermont College Southern Vermont College was a private college on the former Edward Everett Estate (originally The Orchards) near Bennington, Vermont. The college closed in 2019. History Southern Vermont College was founded in 1926 as St. Joseph Business Sch ...

from 2002 to 2004,

St. Edward's University St. Edward's University is a private, Catholic university in Austin, Texas, United States. It was founded and is operated in the Holy Cross tradition. History Founding and early history St. Edward's University was founded by the Reverend Edwa ...

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

from 2004 o 2009, and

University of Texas–Pan American The University of Texas–Pan American (UTPA) was a public university in Edinburg, Texas. Founded in 1927, it was a component institution of the University of Texas System. The university served the Rio Grande Valley (Texas), Rio Grande Valley a ...

from 2009 to 2013. He was named

Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference The Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) is a List of college athletic conferences in the United States, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Its 12 members are loc ...

Coach of the Year in and was given the Jack Bennett Award in 2015.

Early life

A native of

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Mark played baseball in high school at the

Latin School of Chicago Latin School of Chicago is a private elementary, middle, and high school located in the Gold Coast neighborhood on the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The school was founded in 1888 by Mabel Slade Vickery. Latin School i ...

, graduating in 1989.Andy Katz: "Well-traveled Ryan Marks has paid his dues"
/ref>Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Athletics - "Ryan Marks Named Head Men's Basketball Coach"
/ref> He graduated from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

in 1993 with a bachelor's degree in public relations.

Coaching career

Marks began his coaching career while attending the

(USC), working as a player personnel assistant for the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

for three seasons, while also assisting at nearby Muir High School for two seasons. After graduating with a degree in journalism with an emphasis in public relations, Marks landed his first college coaching gig at the

University of Central Missouri The University of Central Missouri (UCM) is a public university in Warrensburg, Missouri, United States. In 2024, enrollment was 13,734 students from 48 states and 52 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, incl ...

, helping guide the Mules to two NCAA Division II tournament bids, including an appearance in the Elite Eight in 1995. In 1996, Marks moved to

Northern Illinois Northern Illinois is a region generally covering the northern third of the U.S. state of Illinois. The region is by far the most populous of Illinois, with nearly 9.7 million residents as of 2010. Economics Northern Illinois is dominated by ...

as an assistant, where he was on staff for six seasons, including the Huskies' trip to the

1996 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1996 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 14, 1996, and ended with the champio ...

, where as a 14-seed, the Huskies narrowly lost, 73–72, to third-seeded

Texas Tech Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship institution of the five- ...

. Marks landed his first head coaching job at

Bennington, Vermont Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...

in 2001. In his three years at the helm of the Mountaineers, Marks compiled a 57–29 record, and in his first season turned around a three-win team in to a 15-win team. The following year, in 2002–03, the Mountaineers set a school record 24–6 mark, and earned its first NCAA Division III tournament bid. He also was the coach of the Southern Vermont baseball team. In 2004, Marks accepted the head coaching job at

. His success carried over as he led the Hilltoppers to a 90–52 record in five seasons, including three NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, something St. Edward's had never accomplished before. In his final season at St. Edward's, Marks recorded his fourth consecutive winning season, a feat that had not been accomplished since the 1959 through 1962 campaigns. In 2009, Marks was named the head coach of

, where in three seasons, he has led the Broncs to a 23–73 record as the team transitioned to the

Great West Conference The Great West Conference (GWC) was an NCAA college athletic conference in the continental United States. Originally a football-only league, it became an all-sports entity during the 2008–09 season. The GWC stopped sponsoring football following ...

. After leading the team to a 16−16 record in 2012–13, Marks' contract was not renewed. On June 26, 2013, Marks was named the head coach at the

, an NAIA school in

. He was named

Coach of the Year in 2015.University of St. Francis 2015-16 Men's Basketball Media Guide by University of St. Francis (Ill.) Athletics - issuu
/ref> Marks was also give the Jack Bennett Award in 2015.Ryan Marks - Saint Francis , 2015 Jack Bennett Award , College Basketball Awards , CollegeInsider.com
/ref>

Head coaching record

Basketball

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marks, Ryan Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American men's basketball coaches Basketball coaches from Illinois Central Missouri Mules basketball coaches College men's basketball head coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in the United States Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball coaches Southern Vermont Mountaineers baseball coaches Southern Vermont Mountaineers men's basketball coaches St. Francis Fighting Saints men's basketball coaches Sports coaches from Chicago St. Edward's Hilltoppers men's basketball coaches UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball coaches University of Southern California alumni