For the first time in over three decades, Monmouth College has been searching for a new men’s basketball coach, as Terry Glasgow recently retired after 35 years of service to the Fighting Scots.

The search for his successor officially came to an end on Oct. 1 when Monmouth named Mark Vershaw as the man to take Glasgow’s seat on the bench.

Vershaw grew up close to Monmouth, in Peoria, and he achieved a great deal of success in his playing career. After playing high school basketball at East Peoria High School, Vershaw went on to play college ball at the University of Wisconsin, a major NCAA program. Wisconsin had three successful years with Vershaw as their power forward. The most notable season being the 2000 campaign when Vershaw, a junior, led the Badgers to the Final Four in the NCAA tournament. In that season, Vershaw was Wisconsin’s leading scorer, and he set school records in minutes played and assists by a forward.

After he graduated from Wisconsin, Vershaw played professionally in Finland for one year, and had several NBA tryouts. He wanted a career in coaching in order to find a more stable lifestyle for his young family. Vershaw and his wife, Natalie, have two young children.

His first coaching position was at his alma mater, East Peoria High School, where he served as the assistant coach for one year. He then took a position as assistant coach at Illinois Central College for one and a half years and Washington State University for the same duration.

After spending the past season as an assistant coach for Cornell University in the Ivy League, Vershaw was excited when he heard about Monmouth’s vacant head coaching position.

“For me, location was a big deal and I came out for an interview and saw the campus, the town and the athletic facilities here, it just furthered my desire for this position,” Vershaw said.

Vershaw is taking over a basketball team that finished with an even 11-11 overall record a year ago. He knows he has his work cut out for him, as the 2007-08 season starts on Nov. 17, in just over a month.

“I look forward to settling in here,” Vershaw said. “The process is going to be a little quick, with the season starting right around the corner, but once we’re able to get settled in I look forward to this season and being able to sell this program to future recruits here.”

Glasgow had an illustrious career as Monmouth’s men’s basketball coach. He recorded an impressive 469 wins during his tenure as coach of the Scots.  When Glasgow started coaching the Scots, Vershaw had not yet been born: Monmouth’s new head coach is only 28 years old.

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