FORT MYERS, Fla. – Entering the 2020-21 season, FGCU men's basketball head coach Michael Fly has announced today the promotion of Austin Kidd to Director of Basketball Operations. Kidd enters his second season with the program after serving as the team's Video Coordinator last year.
 
His promotion fills the spot vacated by the departure of B.J. Ivey who was recently announced as the head coach at Out-Of-Door Academy in Sarasota.
 
"Austin has done a really terrific job over the past year for program and I know he will continue to do so in this new role," said head men's basketball coach Michael Fly. "He is always looking for new ways to grow professionally and has a great sense of detail and planning which is critical for the Director of Operations position. We wish B.J. all the best as he moves on to a new opportunity and we're thankful for the hard work and dedication he gave to our team during his tenure."
 
Kidd was originally hired in July 2019 as the Video Coordinator where he oversaw the program's video operations and scouting breakdowns among other responsibilities.
 
The Livermore, Ky., native spent the two years prior to joining FGCU at Kentucky as a graduate assistant for the nationally recognized men's basketball program. His core responsibilities included assisting the coaching staff with video operations and day-to-day tasks, while also playing a role in John Calipari's summer camps and clinics.

Before joining the Wildcats, Kidd served as a volunteer assistant coach at nearby Transylvania University from 2014-17, where he assisted with film editing and exchange, opponent scouts, preparing scouting reports, on-and-off campus recruiting visits and social media.

Kidd was also an assistant coach with the Lexington Ice, an AAU program, from March to July 2017.

The two-time Kentucky alum has been active in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass since 2014. He earned his bachelor's degree in communication with a minor in business in 2017 before wrapping up his master's degree in sport leadership in May 2019.

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IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
COACH FLY
Michael Fly was introduced as the fourth FGCU men's basketball head coach on April 5, 2018. He had spent the previous seven years as an assistant coach on the Eagles' staff. In his time with the Eagles, he helped FGCU to a 164-108 record (.618 winning percentage), including six ASUN Tournament Final appearances, three NCAA Tournament victories, three ASUN Tournament titles and three ASUN Regular Season Championships, two berths in the NIT, a CIT appearance and a run to the Sweet 16. He has coached 13 all-conference selections while with the Green and Blue, including two ASUN Player of the Year honors in Sherwood Brown and Brandon Goodwin, two ASUN Defensive Player of the Year selections in Bernard Thompson and Demetris Morant and one ASUN Newcomer of the Year in Schadrac Casimir. Of the top-10 players in career points at FGCU, Fly has helped develop eight of them, including all-time leading scorer Thompson (1,835). Additionally, the Kentucky alumnus has coached both the ASUN all-time assists leader Brett Comer (845; 24th in NCAA history) and FGCU all-time leading rebounder Chase Fieler (714).
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 82 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 38 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (No. 24, 2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate (APR) in their sport and have had the highest percentage of teams so honored from these two groups over each of the past three years. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--