Tony Fuller wanted a lifestyle change. The Stanford assistant basketball coach spent years traveling, recruiting and coaching in the Pac-10 Conference, and though he's coached teams that went to five NCAA tournaments, he felt he was missing out on his children's upbringing.
Fuller, 47, took a step toward change Tuesday when he accepted the job to become Brophy's boys basketball coach. He replaces Mark Granger, who spent 10 years as Broncos coach before leaving to start a new basketball program in California.
Fuller has been an assistant at Stanford since 1999. Before then he coached at his alma mater, Pepperdine, as well as San Diego State. He's expected to arrive next week.
"We lose one and hopefully gain someone who can do a lot with our situation," Brophy athletic director John Chambers said. "We're not broke. We'll be fine."
Chambers said he didn't want to see Granger leave, but the chance to hire a longtime coach with substantial college credentials made it easier to swallow.
"He brings a lot of upside and has been in the college game in different schools," Chambers said. "He wants to change what he's doing and be more involved with his family."
With Fuller, Chambers believes Brophy will be an up-tempo, motion-offense team.
But not at the classroom's expense.
"I'm excited," Fuller said. "You want to win, but you need to run a clean program. Education comes first."
