4/16/2024 | Men’s Basketball
BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic head men’s basketball John Jakus announced Tuesday that Todd Abernethy is returning to the staff as an assistant coach. This will mark Abernethy’s sixth season with the Owls.
Abernethy joined FAU’s staff in the spring of 2019, having spent the previous season as the head coach at Trinity International University in Deerfield, Illinois. Before Trinity, Abernethy served as an assistant coach at Ole Miss for four seasons.
With Abernethy on the staff in 2023-24, the Owls won 25 games, second most in program history, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season. Competing in their first season as a member of the American Athletic Conference, FAU finished second in conference standings at 14-4 in addition to a 10-3 non-conference schedule highlighted by wins over No. 4 Arizona and No. 12 Texas A&M.
In 2022-23, Abernethy and the Owls’ coaching staff led Florida Atlantic to what is undoubtedly the greatest season in program history. FAU qualified for the NCAA Tournament for only the second time in school history and advanced all the way to the Final Four. The Owls led the nation with a school-record 35 wins (35-4), finishing three victories shy of the single-season Division I record. Florida Atlantic won both the Conference USA tournament and regular season titles, which each marked program firsts.
Abernethy has been a part of winning seasons in each of his five years in Boca Raton, including three consecutive postseason appearances. The Owls have posted an overall record of 126-72, including 66-38 in conference play with Abernethy on staff.
A native of Carmel, Indiana, Abernethy played at Ole Miss from 2003-2007 and earned All-SEC honors in 2006-07 after leading the Rebels to the SEC Western Division Championship. Abernethy, a three-time SEC Academic Honor Roll honoree, finished his playing career at Ole Miss with 1,036 points, while his 431 assists ranked fourth in school history.
Abernethy graduated from Ole Miss in 2007 with a degree in banking and finance and played professionally overseas for seven years before his move to coaching. He and his wife, Micah Abernethy, have two daughters, Ruthie and Maria, and two sons, Jack and William. Micah lettered in track and field and cross-country and earned a degree in Marketing at Ole Miss.
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Head Coach John Jakus
“Todd comes from a great basketball family going back to his father who played at Indiana and then in the NBA. Todd was a great player in the SEC and was a four-year starter who by the time he finished was an all-league player. He then became a great coach, first as an assistant at the SEC level and then as head coach of my alma mater in Trinity. With our ties at TIU, we have many shared mutual connections. Over the past five years, Todd has been an instrumental part to the development of the FAU players and program into a Final Four team. When meeting with the team, it was clear how much Todd meant to all of them, making this hire as much about the guys as anything else.”
Assistant Coach Todd Abernethy
“I am really thankful for the opportunity to stay at Florida Atlantic with Coach Jakus and his staff and continue to build upon the success we have had here at FAU. The Boca and FAU community have meant so much to my family and we are excited to stay in Paradise. Go Owls!”
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