Forbes settles in at Texas A&M as assistant basketball coach for Aggies
Former Barton County Community College men's basketball coach Steve Forbes has been named as an assistant men's basketball coach for Texas A&M University. Forbes makes the move to Big XII after being an assistant coach for Illinois State this past season. Forbes took the job at A&M earlier this month, where he will serve under the Aggies new head coach Billy Gillispie. Gillispie took over the job at A&M after turning in a great season at the University of Texas-El Paso last season. Forbes makes the move after just one season at Illinois State.
"It was a hard decision to make," Coach Forbes said. "With the timing of it and everything it was tough. School was just starting, we had just moved from Louisiana Tech the year before. But the plusses far outweighed the minuses. You only get these opportunities once or twice in a lifetime and you have to jump on it."
Coach Gillispie was equally excited have Forbes on board.
"I'm really excited about having Steve join our staff," Coach Gillispie said. "He's been a head coach on the junior college level and has unbelievable recruiting contacts. Everyone I talked with kept saying he was a guy I needed to add to my staff. I'm looking forward to him and his family joining the community and helping us build our program."
For Forbes, it is his 4th job since leaving Barton County in 1998. While at Barton, Forbes posted a 68-28 mark in his 3 seasons from 1995-98. His final team went 29-4 in 1997-98. Forbes' .708 career winning percentage ranks No. 4 all-time for the Cougars. Brandon Hughes and Alek Radojevic - two NJCAA All-Americans for Barton -- played under Forbes.
"That is just the way it is in this business (moving) from Idaho, to La Tech, to Illinois State, to here. It seems like we are always moving," Forbes said. "Barton the longest we have been anywhere (5 years). We still have a lot of friends there and stay in touch. If we had to pick some place we call home in 16 years of marriage it would be Great Bend. Part of me wants to get comfortable but I feel that when I get an opportunity I have to take advantage of it."
And coaching in the very prestigious Big XII was an opportunity Forbes could not pass up. He will coach under Gillispie, who has been a winner in his previous stints. This past season Gillispie took over at UTEP and took a 6-22 team to a team that won 24 games and found itself in the NCAA tournament.
"Billy has been to the Final 8 twice in Tulsa and Illinois and had the biggest turnaround in the NCAA last season at UTEP taking a team from 6 wins to 24 and the NCAA tournament," Forbes said. "He's a winner. Right now we can only go one way here and that's up. It will not be easy. In this league you have to earn everything you get. Night in, night out you got to bring it."
But that is also the same reason that made Coach Forbes so interesting in moving the Big XII – the high level of competition.
"Men's basketball is not any better anywhere else than the Big XII, especially for a guy with my background," Coach Forbes said. "Recruiting the junior college athlete has been a successful route for several teams in this conference. Some of the best JCs are right in our own back yard through Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
"This is a great fit, they have an unbelievable institution -- academically, facility-wise, and commitment-wise."
Forbes is just the latest coach from his era at Barton County to find their way into the Big XII. Ray Bechard (volleyball), Suzie Weimers (volleyball) and Randy Cole (track) all served with Forbes at Barton and all found their way to the Big XII since leaving Barton County. Bechard is at Kansas and Weimers is at Kansas State. Cole is now at Wyoming.