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ROHRSSEN
Barry Rohrssen enters his fifth
season at the helm of Manhattan
College's basketball program. Since
his arrival in Riverdale, Rohrssen
has rejuvenated the Jaspers
through strong local recruiting, while
also experiencing success in the
classroom. In his tenure, Rohrssen
has mentored six All-MAAC selections,
six MAAC Players of the Week,
and last spring he graduated all six
members of his first recruiting class.
With 52 victories under his belt
in Riverdale, including two in the
postseason, Rohrssen ranks eighth on
the career wins list in the program’s
105 year storied history. Rohrssen
is also tied for third all-time with 28
victories on the Jaspers home court in
Draddy Gymnasium. He has mentored
four 1,000-point scorers, all of whom
finished in the top-20 of the Jaspers’
scoring chart.
Rohrssen was named Manhattan's
22nd head men's basketball coach
on April 25, 2006. He arrived back in
his native New York after spending
the previous seven seasons as an
assistant coach at the University
of Pittsburgh. Rohrssen began his
coaching stint at Pitt behind the
leadership of two-time National Coach
of the Year Ben Howland, and spent
his last three seasons as associate
head coach under 2009 Naismith
Coach of the Year Jamie Dixon.
In his first year at Manhattan,
Rohrssen guided the Jaspers to 10
MAAC wins, the second most for a
Manhattan head coach in his inaugural
season. In 2007-08, Manhattan
earned its first MAAC Tournament
victory during the Rohrssen era,
behind a team whose underclassmen
combined for over 80% of the Jaspers'
scoring offense. The Jaspers earned
their second postseason win behind
Rohrssen’s leadership in 2009-2010
with the program’s highest scoring
output in a postseason game (94)
in over 15 years. Rohrssen also
mentored the 2010 MAAC scoring
champion.
Rohrssen's most successful
campaign was during the 2008-09
season when he guided Manhattan
to a fourth place MAAC finish and a
16-14 overall record, which included
victories over two NCAA Tournament
participants. The Jaspers tallied nine
wins at Draddy Gymnasium, the most
since 2005-06.
At Pitt, the Brooklyn native played
a vital role in the Panthers' rise to
national prominence. The Panthers
won three BIG EAST Regular Season
titles and one BIG EAST Tournament
Championship over the course of
Rohrssen's final five years in the Steel
City.
Many of Rohrssen's New York City
recruits became the foundation for
the Panthers' success. He played a
large role in the signings of area prep
stars Levance Fields (Xaverian), Tyrell
Biggs (Don Bosco Prep, N.J.), Ronald
Ramon (All Hallows), Keith Benjamin
(Mt. Vernon), Chris Taft (Xaverian/
Golden State Warriors), Carl Krauser
(Notre Dame Academy), and Mark
McCarroll (Christ the King). Dick
"Hoops" Weiss of the New York Daily
News placed Rohrssen at the top of
his list of coaches who were making
the biggest recruiting impact in the
City in a July 2004 article.
Over the course of his final five
seasons at Pitt, Rohrssen was part
of five 20-plus win seasons and five
NCAA appearances. The Panthers
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