Where Are They Now? A Successful Post-Coaching Game Plan A Rocky Tenure as JU Head Coach Motivated Haddad in Business World

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Byline: Gene Frenette

When Rich Haddad was fired in 1991 as Jacksonville University's basketball coach after four seasons, he didn't give much thought to pursuing another line of work until he got a tip from legendary coach Lefty Driesell, then midway through a nine-year run at James Madison University.

"I thought about going back to coaching, but when I called Lefty, he asked how old I was," said Haddad, then 38 years old. "He said, 'You should look into another profession. Everybody knows you can recruit players and you can always get back in [coaching]. Go make some money, and if you're not happy doing it, you can always come back.' "

Driesell's advice, coupled with a scene Haddad had seen repeated many times at the Final Four coaches convention, prompted him to look for employment outside his profession.

"I would see great coaches begging to hang on and get jobs with young, upstart coaches," Haddad …