Former Purdue head coach and current St. John’s assistant Gene Keady is engaged to be married, according to The Star Press.
“I am engaged,” Keady told the Press. “We don’t know when we are getting married, but I’ve met a really nice lady, and we’re having fun.”
Gene Keady and Pat Keady were married for more than 25 years, before she passed away in 2009.
The 75-year-old Keady coached Purdue from 1980-2005, tallying an overall record of 512-270 with the Boilermakers, including six Big Ten regular-season titles. Prior to Purdue, he coached at Western Kentucky and was an assistant at Arkansas.
He also had a one-year stint with the Toronto Raptors in 2005-06.
When Steve Lavin was named head coach at St. John’s in 2010, Keady was brought on as a special assistant. Lavin calls Keady a “mentor,” as the two worked together at Purdue in the 1980s, before Lavin moved on to become the head coach at UCLA.
A young and inexperienced St. John’s team finished 13-19 this past season, including 6-12 in the Big East. They had strong wins over Cincinnati and Notre Dame, along with eventual surprise NCAA tournament spoilers Lehigh.
Freshman Moe Harkless averaged 15.3 points and 8.6 rebounds and has declared for the NBA draft. He is projected to be selected in the latter third of the first round.
Keady has some experience with drafts as well, as he was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 223rd overall pick in the 1958 NFL draft. He never got a chance to play for the black and yellow, though.
Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_
