May 16, 2008

Jim Christian will have a familiar face from Kent State joining him in the TCU men's basketball program as former Golden Flashes assistant coach Eric Haut will join the Horned Frogs as their Director of Basketball Operations - which was announced on Friday (May 16).

"I'm excited about the opportunity to once again work with Coach Christian," said Haut. "It was a great experience to be a part of what he was achieving at Kent State, and I look forward to helping him reach that same level of success at TCU."

"Eric embodies everything that we want in our players, and he is someone who knows our program and knows what we are trying to accomplish. He was a hard worker when he played for us, and he has carried that same mentality over into his coaching career. He is a rising star in this business and is going to be a great coach someday," said Christian.

Haut spent three seasons under Christian at Kent State after serving one season as its Director of Basketball Operations followed by two seasons as an assistant coach during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 campaigns.

As a member of the Kent State coaching staff during the 2007-08 campaign - Haut aided the Golden Flashes to a 28-7 record en route to earning their first top-25 ranking in program history, peaking at 23rd by the Associated Press and 24th in the ESPN/USA Today polls. The Golden Flashes also advanced to their second NCAA Tournament in three seasons as the number-nine seed - which was the highest-seed for Kent State in program history.

Haut was a four-year standout for the Golden Flashes during his playing career as he was a member of the Kent State team that advanced to the Elite Eight during the 2001-02 season. The Lansing, Mich., native concluded his playing career ranked second in the Kent State record books with 200 three-pointers and finished with 983 total points for the Golden Flashes.

During his junior campaign - Haut connected on 41.6 percent (84-of-202) of his three-point field goal attempts - which was the second-highest three-point field goals in a single-season in Kent State history. For his career - Haut connected on 40.5 percent (200-of-494) of his three-point field goal attempts to go along with 83.9 percent (141-of-168) of his attempts from the charity stripe.

In his four-year career with the Golden Flashes - Haut appeared in 123 games where Kent State recorded a 98-34 (.742 winning percentage) to go along with four straight Mid-American Conference East Division titles while playing in three MAC Tournament Championship games.

Following graduation - Haut worked as a graduate assistant coach at Western Kentucky during the 2004-05 season under former WKU head coach and current University of South Carolina head coach Darrin Horn.

TCU Athletic Media Relations