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Fresh off his second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance — his third in five years — Georgia State Panthers head coach Ron Hunter will take the same position at Tulane, according to Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Hunter has coached Georgia State since 2011 and had been a rumored candidate for the job over the last few days.
Ron Hunter tells the AJC: "I'm taking the Tulane job ... I agonized until midnight last night. I love the people of Atlanta and the Georgia State community. They've been great to me. But it's time."
— Mark Bradley (@MarkBradleyAJC) March 24, 2019
The Tulane job opened up after the university fired Mike Dunleavy, Sr., who compiled a 24-69 record in three years with the Green Wave.
The past few seasons have been a different story for Hunter, whose time in Atlanta has made him one of the most successful and well-known mid-major coaches in the country.
Despite finishing his time at GSU by posting 20 wins in five of the past six seasons, Hunter is probably best known for coaching the 2014-15 Panthers team that upset 3 seed Baylor in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Tulane is a tough coaching job, and not even a former NBA head coach could turn it around. This is certain to be a challenge for Hunter, but it is a stellar hire by Tulane. After all, they’re getting a man who possesses both high level coaching credentials and charisma.