A longtime Middle Tennessee fixture is set to depart the Murphy Center this summer, as Murfreesboro's Providence Christian Academy announced Middle Tennessee Director of Men's Basketball Operations Kerry Hammonds II as its new head boys basketball coach on Tuesday.
"Kerry Hammonds was a great asset to me and our program during a year of transition," MT head men's basketball coach Nick McDevitt said. "His knowledge of the Murfreesboro community, our university and the basketball program were invaluable. He is a high-character individual who has an infectious personality that everyone wants to be around. Kerry has an outstanding work ethic and a strong desire to be good at everything he does. Those qualities will serve him very well as he leads the young men as the head coach at PCA. We wish him well!"
Hammonds has spent eight of the last nine seasons on Middle Tennessee's campus, beginning with an impressive four-year career in blue and white in which he amassed 869 points from 2010-14 and helped the Blue Raiders reach their first NCAA Tournament in 24 seasons as a junior in 2013.
The 6-foot-5 guard remains in the program's record books, with his 135 career 3-pointers and 121 career games played each landing in the Top 10 in Blue Raider history.
"This is a very bittersweet announcement for me," Hammonds said. "I am leaving a place I have called home for so many years, but I get to begin the next phase of my life at an amazing place in PCA. Middle Tennessee gave me the opportunity to not only play college basketball, but also the chance continue my father's legacy at his alma mater. It has brought a number of extremely special people into my life, all of which have played a vital role in shaping me into the man I am today."
Following his playing career, Hammonds immediately joined the Middle Tennessee coaching staff as a graduate assistant coach. His first two-year stint on the sideline saw the Blue Raiders return to the NCAA Tournament in 2016, where they knocked off tournament favorite Michigan State in one of the event's all-time largest upsets.
A Murfreesboro native who spent his high school career at nearby Siegel High School, Hammonds then returned to Siegel as an assistant boys basketball coach for just one season before Murphy Center came calling once again.
Now, after a two-year stint in the operations role on his alma mater's men's basketball staff, the Blue Raider great has earned the reigns at a program of his own for the first time in his young coaching career as he looks to take a hometown team to new heights.
"I want to thank Chris Massaro and Kermit Davis for giving me the opportunity to not only play and coach, but to earn two degrees, as well," Hammonds said. "I would also like to thank Nick McDevitt and his staff for allowing me the opportunity to remain here this year. He has the program ascending in the right direction, and I can't wait to see where he takes it.
"This will always be home for me and my family, so thank you to the Blue Raider family for their continued support over the years."
Hammonds will remain with the Blue Raiders through the end of June and will begin his tenure at PCA on July 1.