PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Picked 14th in the ACC, Jeff Capel led Pitt to an eight-win turnaround from last season and selected on Monday as the ACC Coach of the Year.
"It is a cool award to be selected by your peers, I've tried to live my life not worrying about awards or what other people think," Capel said Monday. "I feel really, really good about our team, about what we've have accomplished and what we can accomplishing going forward.
That is my focus."
Capel was an overwhelming winner, 57 votes to eight over second-place finisher, Miami's Jim Larranaga. Capel also joins the list of father-son Coach of Year winners, his father winning Colonial Athletic Conference award with North Carolina A&T in 1995.
"He deserves it 100%," said second-team ACC and Pitt forward Blake Hinson. "That's another person you have to watch off the court. It's really more than the x's and o's with him. Of course he can coach basketball. He wouldn't have his job if he couldn't. His way of managing a new team like he has this year has been award-worthy. I'm super-happy for that. That's a part of coaching that I think people don't realize is a huge part of it. You have to manage personalities as well and he's phenomenal at it."
"The work that he's put in," said first-team All-ACC and Pitt guard Jamarius Burton. "The commitment he's shown. The type of energy and positivity that he's had, not just this year, but last year when it was rough. You see him take that same mindset, make some improvements and to be able to do what we've done this year he deserves that accolade."
Capel is also the first Pitt basketball coach to win Coach of the Year honors.
