Nov. 4, 2004
ORLANDO - UCF Director of Athletics Steve Orsini announced Thursday the signing of a multi-year contract extension for men's basketball coach Kirk Speraw. The three-year agreement will keep Speraw under contract through the 2006-07 season.
The announcement comes just prior to the start of the 2004-05 season as Friday night's MidKnight Madness marks the opening of the new campaign. Over the last two seasons under Speraw, the Golden Knights have amassed 46 wins, the top total in the state and 25th best total in the nation among Division I schools.
"Kirk has earned this extension through his hard work and dedication," Orsini said. "He has done a great job with the UCF basketball program in the Atlantic Sun Conference and we are committed to seeing the growth of the program continue as it makes the transition to Conference USA."
"I would like to thank Steve Orsini and Dr. Hitt for extending this contract and allowing us the opportunity to continue the development of this program," stated Speraw. "Through the years, our coaching staffs have invested a great deal of time, effort, sweat and tears, and it is gratifying that their commitment to UCF is being recognized. Our current staff will continue to invest great energy in positioning our program to be successful through the challenging transition ahead."
The Golden Knights are coming off one of the most successful seasons in school history. They posted a 25-6 record and advanced to the NCAA tournament for the third time since moving to Division I in 1984. Speraw's team strung together the one of longest winning streaks in school history with 14 straight and two players were named all-conference, including first-team member Dexter Lyons, who was also named defensive player of the year. Under Speraw, UCF has posted three 20-win seasons, including the last two.
Entering his 12th season as the UCF mentor, Speraw has compiled a 171-154 mark. He has turned UCF into one of the premier teams in the Atlantic Sun during his tenure. In addition to the three NCAA Tournament appearances, Speraw has led the Knights to the conference championship game three additional times. UCF has advanced to the conference semifinals in each of the last seven seasons. Speraw's players have also received A-Sun honors 12 times including Player-of-the-Year Mark Jones who won the award following the 1998 season.
UCF begins its final season as a member of the Atlantic Sun as the entire athletics department will join Conference USA for the 2005-06 season. Conference USA has consistently been rated as one of the top basketball leagues in the country as it enters its 10th year. The league has produced 51 postseason teams (34 NCAA and 24 NIT) including three Elite Eight appearances as well as a Final Four team. Conference USA schools have also appeared in the NIT semifinals three times and captured the nations oldest basketball tournament title once. The league has also been among the nations leaders in attendance, drawing nearly 2 million fans each season.
The Knights begin the 2004-05 campaign on November 18 when they travel to Fairbanks, Alaska, to compete in the prestigious BP Top of the World Classic. The Knights are slated to face the host institution Alaska-Fairbanks in the opener of the event.