Georgia has hired former Indiana coach Tom Crean to replace Mark Fox, the school announced Thursday night. Athletic director Greg McGarity announced Crean agreed to a six-year contract worth $3.2 million annually.
CBS Sports reported the contract terms earlier Thursday night.
"Tom Crean is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball over the past two decades," McGarity said. "His teams have consistently been participants in postseason play, and his players have been extremely successful in the classroom. He's going to be a great fit for the University of Georgia. I'm extremely excited to have him leading Georgia Basketball into the future and to welcome his family into the Bulldog Nation."
Crean, 51, spent the past year working for ESPN as a college basketball analyst. He was fired last March at Indiana following his ninth season with the Hoosiers. The 2016 Big Ten Coach of the Year guided Indiana to two outright Big Ten regular-season titles and a No. 1 seed in the 2013 NCAA Tournament in those nine seasons. Before that, he coached Marquette for nine seasons and advanced to the Final Four in 2003.
Crean replaces Fox, who was fired after going 163-133 and never advancing past the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament in two appearances over nine seasons. Crean went 166-135 at Indiana -- including 138-69 over his final six seasons.
Sources told CBS Sports that a search firm working on behalf of Georgia initially inquired about Xavier's Chris Mack and Texas' Shaka Smart, both of whom respectfully declined. Georgia then offered its job to former Ohio State coach Thad Matta earlier this week. He declined the offer Wednesday.
