Chris Kemp Named EOU Head Men’s Basketball Coach
By Joe Hathaway on Friday, June 23rd, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE – (Release from Eastern Oregon University) After two seasons in the position of Interim Head Coach, Chris Kemp has dropped the interim tag and officially been named the leader of EOU Men’s Basketball.
“I am excited to announce that Chris Kemp has been named our head men’s basketball coach,” Athletic Director and Head Women’s Basketball Coach Anji Weissenfluh said. “He earned this opportunity through the past two successful seasons as our interim coach. Chris is a proven recruiter, bringing talented student-athletes to EOU.”
Kemp moves into the position after six years of experience at EOU coaching in either an assistant or interim head coach role. He first came to EOU as an assistant coach for men’s basketball in the fall of 2017 and even joined the women’s basketball coaching staff as an assistant for a season during the 2020-21 campaign.
“I want to thank the Director of Athletics, Anji Weissenfluh for the opportunity to lead the program,” Kemp said. “The support that I have gotten from her and the athletic department as a whole has given me a great opportunity to succeed and pursue winning a championship. The job has just begun!”
Named the Interim Head Coach just prior to the start of the 2021-22 season, Kemp led the Mounties to back-to-back winning seasons. In his first year at the helm, Kemp helped spark a turnaround putting together an 18-13 season with a 12-10 record in CCC action. In his most recent season, the Arizona Christian University alumnus led the Mounties to their most successful campaign in the last six years with a record of 24-9 overall and 15-5 in conference play. The 2022-23 season marked the first year the Mounties made it to the NAIA National Tournament since 2017.
“Being the head coach here at Eastern Oregon has been a dream come true, I could not be more excited for the opportunity to continue what we are building,” Kemp said.
Prior to his time at EOU, Kemp spent a year as an assistant coach at North Idaho College in 2016-17. In his lone year with the program he helped guide the Cardinals to a No. 1 ranking in the Northwest Athletic Conference and saw multiple players commit to NCAA Division I, II and NAIA programs around the nation.
Kemp’s coaching career started at the high school level where he spent six years as a boys’ basketball coach in the greater Phoenix, Arizona area. As a player Kemp spent three seasons at ACU where he started all 32 games his senior season for a squad that made the National Tournament.
The Arizona native graduated from ACU in 2009 with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management. Kemp and his wife, Stephanie, have three daughters: Kynsley, Aubrey, and Braelyn.
“Coach Kemp exemplifies the core values of the athletic department, is a team player, and is a wonderful ambassador for EOU. We are excited for the future of the men’s basketball program,” Weissenfluh said.
