Nebraska Cornhuskers assistant coach Armon Gates leaves for Oregon

The Nebraska Cornhuskers late Friday afternoon announced the departure of key assistant coach Armon Gates who has been with the program since 2018 and in the Big Ten for the past nine seasons overall. Gates is headed west to join the Oregon Ducks.

Gates joined the Nebraska staff under former head coach Tim Miles in 2018 following five seasons in Evanston with the Northwestern Wildcats. He was retained when head coach Fred Hoiberg replaced Miles in 2019. He worked primarily with the Huskers’ backcourt in addition to his recruiting role and help scouting opponents.

Despite initial speculation that Gates would be leaving the program earlier this spring as part of a staff shakeup following three rough seasons for Nebrasketball, he remained through other departures of assistant and administrative staff. However, he is now off to the Oregon Ducks despite the uncertainty around the Pac-12’s viability following USC and UCLA’s departure from the league to the Big Ten in 2024.

Gates will join the Ducks under head coach Dana Altman who is entering his 13th season at the helm in Eugene. Altman has a career record of 300-124 with the Ducks, including a 143-73 Pac-10/12 record with eight NCAA Tournament appearances including the 2017 Final Four. He also boasts four regular season conference titles and three conference tournament titles with the Ducks.

Coach Hoiberg offered the following statement on the departure:

“Armon Gates has informed me that he is leaving Nebraska to take another coaching position. I appreciate all of Armon’s contributions to Husker Basketball over the past four-plus seasons, as he has been a valuable member of our coaching staff since I arrived three years ago. I wish Armon, his wife Ashley and his family all the best as he begins his new endeavor. Looking forward, we will be diligent in finding the right person to join our coaching staff to continue to help us build our program.”

The Huskers will now look to fill the assistant coach role in the coming weeks ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Nebraska names new Director of Player Development

Earlier this week, the Huskers also announced the new Director of Player Development, Emmanuel Tommy. He will assist with the day-to-day operation of the Husker program and help develop programming for players in addition to on-campus recruiting roles.

Head coach Fred Hoiberg offered the following statement on the hire:

“We are pleased to welcome Emmanuel to our basketball staff. He has experience in both the administrative and coaching sides of basketball and understands what it takes to connect with people, a trait which is essential for this role. In getting to know him through this process, he is a high-energy, positive person who wants to help people be successful on and off the court. He is a good fit for our program, and we welcome Emmanuel and his family to Lincoln.”

Tommy joins the Huskers following one season as an assistant coach at Alabama A&M. He worked in administrative roles at both McNeese State (2020-21) and South Alabama (2019-20) prior to that.