WASHINGTON – Neil Harrow enters his first season at Fordham after a successful one-year stint at LIU where he set a program record for most wins (21) by a debuting head coach.
An East Kilbride, Scotland native, Harrow attended a large high school, where he quickly decided he wanted to play a sport. With lots of competition for spot on the boys’ soccer team, he was convinced by his friends to join the basketball team instead – and he loved it.
He chased the dream to play before eventually getting into coaching, starting in 2013 as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Valdosta State. Now, his coaching journey continues at Fordham where he is currently focused on improving the program’s offense, aiming to rank in the top half of the Atlantic 10 offensively this season.
“Every team is different,” he noted from his past experiences. “Every team needs something different. Just looking back at how I structured our season in terms of the prep and practice. Whether you do it for one year or 25, you learn how to structure practice over the course of a year. Just keep coaching no matter what.”
Harrow has already established a desire for a versatile roster full of shot-makers. Ideally, he would like his players to play more than one position, competing at multiple places on the court efficiently within a diverse skill set.
“We are still building and discovering the group,” Harrow explained to Field of 68’s Talia Goodman. “We’re new and nobody knows what we’re going to be. Work quietly, work in the dark and let’s see how good we can be. I am really excited to build the program one day at a time. One step at a time.”
Here is a look at the Rams:
Coach – Neil Harrow – 1
st season
Last year- Fordham finished last season with a 10-20 overall record, going 2-16 in Atlantic 10 play. The Rams battled Saint Louis in an A10 Tournament first round contest but fell short.
They’ll miss- Ornella Niankan (5.8 ppg/4.2 rebs/41.1% FG), Tia Morgan (5.7 ppg/82.6% FT), Emma Wilson-Saltos (5.6 ppg)
Impact returners- Alexis Black (16.3 ppg/85.6% FT), Ugne Sirtautaite (7.5 ppg/50.4% FG), Carryn Easley (7.3 ppg/84 assts/49 stls)
Newcomers of note- Olivia Kulyk (NJIT), Ella Averill (Australia), Caitlyn Martin (Australia)
Reasons to be optimistic: Alexis Black is back and healthy, leading a group of seven returning Fordham players from last season’s roster. She brought credibility to the Rams’ offense with her scoring ability, which included a record-setting 42-point performance against Seton Hall last year. Harrow emphasized Black’s work over the offseason to balance her game.
Carryn Easley started 16 of the 29 games she appeared in as a freshman, leading the team with 49 steals. Ugne Sirtautaite enters her senior season where she was ranked second on the team with 7.5 points per game.
“They love Fordham, which is great,” said Harrow of the seven returners. “Anyone who has been there knows how special it is, so it wasn’t hard to convince them to stay. First and foremost, they really value being at Fordham. I think they were excited for a new style, that challenge.”
X Factor- Olivia Kulyk is a junior guard from NJIT and to Harrow’s point of putting the ball in the basket, she averaged 14.6 points a game, while pacing the America East with 76 made three-point shots, earning a place on last season’s all conference second team. In her freshman season, Kulyk was named America East Rookie of the Year.
“Just talking to (Harrow) in my recruitment, how he wanted to play, the playstyle he talked about,” Kulyk explained of her decision to transfer to Fordham. “How he saw the game was influential and I came with one of my coaches from NJIT, Coach Kelly (Guarino). I knew I wanted to stay with her, she had been a huge part of my journey at NJIT.”
Now as an upperclassman, Kulyk determined she wants to be more physical in the post and is working on different ways to move off screens. Her relationship with Harrow is already off to a good start and praised his energy during Media Day.
Circle the date- A Nov. 19 morning tilt against No. 4 Duke headlines the Rams’ non-conference slate. The Blue Devils are ACC preseason favorites after winning the regular and postseason conference titles before falling to national champion UCLA in the Elite Eight.
Bottom line- Fordham’s key will be constantly growing throughout year one. Harrow admits that it is an important task, but if the Rams can stick to the right process, then good things are ahead.
“We get to write our own story,” concluded Harrow.
Zac Weiss is a college athletics beat writer for Pittsburgh Sports Now, primarily reporting on Duquesne Athletics. Across his career, he has covered over 1,000 A10 sporting events.