After earning the Hofstra men’s basketball team its second straight 20-plus win season, a regular season championship and the first overall seed in the upcoming Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) tournament, Speedy Claxton earned himself a new multi-year contract extension to remain the Pride’s head coach on Monday, Feb. 27, per a release by the university.
“Speedy Claxton embodies Hofstra Pride,” said Hofstra president Susan Poser. “He is an outstanding coach who has established a special bond with his players and with the entire Hofstra community. I am thrilled that he wants to remain at Hofstra for the long term.”
According to Claxton, the school approached him two weeks ago to begin initial conversations about a new deal. Although it came initially as a surprise, Claxton viewed Hofstra’s willingness to negotiate as a sign of validation.
“They kind of caught me off guard,” Claxton said. “I told them what I wanted and needed, and to their credit, they gave me exactly what I wanted. I’m off to really good start, and doing a really good job. They’re invested in me. I got to make a return on their investment and keep continuing to do well.”
In two years as Hofstra’s head coach, Claxton has an overall record of 44-19, with a 29-7 mark against the rest of the CAA. With the Pride playing at a prolific rate since his arrival, speculation had begun among college basketball fans that Claxton’s name was on the shortlist for competing schools.
While it’s uncertain if the university was aware of such rumors prior to the extension, it’s clear that Hofstra wanted to lock up their head coach long-term before he ever had the chance to even consider another offer.
“I think we’re always going to expect there to be interest in Speedy Claxton,” said Hofstra vice president and director of athletics Rick Cole Jr. “That’s going to remain as long as he’s in the coaching profession. He’s our coach, and we knew that we wanted that to be the case for years to come.”
Regardless of the presence of any outside pressure, the timing of Claxton’s extension is important nonetheless. Not many coaches can boast the same resume as Claxton in their sophomore season, never mind in their careers, which is something that he is keenly aware of.
“I’m not like other coaches,” Claxton said. “I really just won a regular season conference title in just my second year. That’s just what I do. I’m a winner. Wherever I go, I win. But then, when I stepped back, I was like, ‘Wow, this is actually kind of crazy what I just did.’”
As crazy as the extension may feel for Claxton, he doesn’t sense any added expectations to deliver a conference championship to Hofstra this week and send the school to its first NCAA national tournament appearance since 2001. Like they always are, Claxton and the Pride are sure of themselves and view their upcoming trip to Washington, D.C., as business as usual.
“I don’t put any pressure on myself,” Claxton said. “My guys are ready, and I’m ready. We’re going to go out there confident but not too overconfident. We know we can get the job done.”
Whether or not he can get the job done this year remains to be seen. Either way, Claxton is eager for the chance to continue to build upon his achievements heading into the future. Especially due to Poser’s commitment to investing in the school’s athletics programs, something he views as a rarity among other university presidents.
“She’s visible,” Claxton said. “She’s at the games, she’s in the suite and she’s on the sidelines. I think that’s the best thing that she’s doing by far. That goes goes a long way. She sees the vision, and she knows that it can help elevate the university.”
When Claxton was hired as Hofstra’s head coach prior to last season, he took the job with the intention of bringing the program to prominence and with the hope of reaching new heights. Now, with more time to work with and more resources at his disposal, Claxton has greater ambitions that go beyond winning a conference championship next week – not only for Hofstra but for himself as well.
“This is more than a job,” Claxton said. “This is my legacy.”
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
