Time to get Excited

The question is no longer if, it's now when? And from all indications the official announcement will come sometime tomorrow, with a press conference sometime after that. But Jamion Christian, a Mount guy to the core, is the head basketball coach.

Christian is a former player and Alum, who has advanced up the coaching ladder since his graduation in 2004. He spent the past season with Shaka Smart at VCU, after assisting at William & Mary and Emory & Henry and serving on the staff at Bucknell.

But he brings so much more than that. He brings a fire and an energy - and a love for a program that truly is special - back to the campus just south of the Mason Dixon Line.

Robert Burke took that away from all of us the last two years. He alienated everyone. The players. The former players. The supporters. The referees.The faculty. The students. Let's be 100% honest, basketball was far from fun in Emmitsburg..

It's Christian's job to restore that. And those people around him, who know him best, think he's just the guy to do it.

Smart, the head coach at VCU who took them from the First Four to the Final Four, highly recommended Christian. Former Mountaineer head coach Milan Brown was also a big supporter during the process.

And the former Mount players who I've been in touch with the last few days can't think of a better guy for the job.

Jason Epps, who was Christian's roommate at the Mount, said many of the past players have been forced to root for Holy Cross or VCU the last two years as the program lost a lot of the basketball alumni support over the past two years. But with this hiring that has already started to return.

"In the past day and a half alone, I've noticed that excitement and support for Mount basketball that was once there, is back. And that's a great thing," Epps wrote. "Jamion is not only a great coach but he's a great person as well. He's going to do an amazing job."

Another former teammate, Gus Durr, is certain that Christian can not only produce on the basketball court but help with some of the issues that have plagued the team off the court in recent memory.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Jamion will be able to lead this program and teach each and every young man the true meaning of being a student athlete. I look forward to an exciting brand of basketball at the Mount for years to come."

One Mount Alum let me know that Christian was the guy who hosted all the recruits on their visits during his senior year so he already has experience recruiting to the Mount. That class included Chris Vann and Markus Mithchell.

Mitchell who now plays professionally for Mayaguez in Puerto Rico is expecting big things from the guy who hosted him on campus years ago.

"Jamion is a young, hungry coach with a great basketball mind and a tremendous work ethic. There is a reason he has climbed up the coaching ladder these past few years, and with an opportunity to be at the forefront, I feel Coach Christian will make everyone from alumni, former players, spectators and most importantly the players under him very proud."

The last two years are history. As a fan base and a community we can move forward, and I for one can tell you that I'm really excited about it. And very excited that a Mount guy named Jamion Christian is at the helm.


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