Ricardo Patton Position: Head Coach Experience: 2nd Year Alma Mater: Belmont, '80

Second-year Northern Illinois University head men's basketball coach Ricardo Patton and his staff have laid the foundation for the resurrection of the Huskie hoops program following their inaugural season in DeKalb.

Now the 49-year old Nashville, Tennessee native plans to lay the brick, pour the concrete and help the Huskies re-emerge as a contender for the Mid-American Conference title and their first berth in the NCAA Tournament since 1996.

While last season was Patton's first at Northern Illinois, he was not the only one who was a rookie on his squad, as the Huskies featured seven players who were in their first season of Division I basketball. NIU, led by MAC Freshman of the Year Darion Anderson, finished with a mark of 6-22.

"It was not only a different experience for our freshman and our young guys, but it was a new experience for our seniors as well," Patton said. "Our inexperience was certainly a factor on most nights."

With a year under his belt, Patton figures that Northern Illinois will make significant improvements in 2008-09, as NIU's top two leading scorers, Anderson (12.2 ppg.) and Jarvis Nichols (9.9 ppg.) return to the line-up for the Huskies.

Patton, who led Colorado to new heights in 11-plus seasons at the helm of the Buffaloes' men's basketball program, joined the Huskies after averaging nearly 17 wins per season and taking CU to six postseason berths, including a pair of NCAA appearances, between 1995-96 and 2006-07. Colorado advanced to postseason play in three of the last five seasons. Patton finished his CU tenure as the second-winningest coach in Colorado basketball history.

In joining the Huskies, Patton said he was impressed with the potential of the Northern Illinois program.

"In coaching, you look for an opportunity where you think you have a chance to be one of the best teams in your league year in and year out," Patton said. "There was no question in my mind that Northern Illinois University is committed to being the best team in its conference and looking each year to play well into March. That is an opportunity every coach wants. I see no reason for our program not to reach new heights."

In all, Patton spent 14 seasons at Colorado. He arrived in Boulder as an assistant coach to Joe Harrington in 1993 and took over head coaching duties on Jan. 16, 1996. He was promoted to head coach on March 5 of that same season, just prior to the 1996 Big Eight Conference Tournament, and went on to compile 184 victories. His teams won 18 or more games six times and collected 15 or more wins in eight seasons. Of 11 18-plus win seasons in Colorado men's basketball history, Patton-coached teams claimed six of them, along with three of the school's four 20-win campaigns. His 2006-07 Buffs' roster included eight freshmen, making it the youngest team in school history.

Patton led the Buffaloes to their first NCAA Tournament berth since 1969 in 1996-97, his first full season as head coach, behind All-American and future NBA star Chauncey Billups, who Patton recruited to Boulder as a CU assistant. The 1996-97 team set a school-record with 22 victories, including a win in the NCAA tourney over a Bobby Knight-coached Indiana team, earned a second-place finish in the Big 12 Conference with an 11-5 record and broke into the rankings for the first time in 25 years.

He returned to the NCAA Tournament with his 2002-03 CU team, whose accomplishments included a 20-12 mark, a victory over No. 3 ranked Texas and four victories over ranked opponents. His 2005-06 Colorado team also reached the 20-win plateau and compiled a 9-7 record in the Big 12. That team was one of four of Patton's Buff squads to be selected to the National Invitational Tournament along with the 1998-99, 1999-2000 and 2003-04 units.

In addition to Billups, Patton protégés David Harrison (2004), a seven-footer from Nashville, Tennessee, and Jaquay Walls (2000) were selected in the NBA draft during his time at CU.

Renowned as a teacher who is dedicated to developing all aspects of his student-athletes, Patton also tirelessly worked to promote Colorado basketball during his time in Boulder. His team initiatives included instituting a preseason etiquette class for his players, taking them to different denominations of churches and exposing them to life in the Denver County jail.

On the court, Patton promised a team that will work hard and play entertaining basketball.

"My philosophy is that our team will play hard from start to finish," he said. "We spend a great deal of time in the preseason preparing for success, and we talk to our players about your effort matching your goal. If you want `A's, you have to give `A' effort. Fans will be entertained by our style of play, by our pressure defense and by our offensive team chemistry. Our offensive philosophy is that the right man to have the ball is the open man."

Prior to going to Colorado, Patton served as an assistant coach at Middle Tennessee State (1988-90), Arkansas-Little Rock (1990-91) and Tennessee State (1991-93). While at MTSU, the Blue Raiders upset fourth-ranked Florida State, while his Tennessee State recruits included Carlos Rogers, who went on to earn the No. 11 pick in the NBA Draft. Patton earned a bachelor's degree from Belmont College, where he was an All-American as a senior, in 1980 and has a master's degree in Administration and Supervision from Trevecca Nazarene College. Patton, who has a fifth-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and his wife, Jennifer, have two sons, Ricardo II and second-year Huskie point guard, Michael.