In a move that should help them recruit the New York City area better as they make the transition to the ACC, Pittsburgh has brought back Barry “Slice” Rohrssen.
“We are extremely excited to bring Barry back to Pitt,” Panthers coach Jamie Dixon said. “From the start, Barry played an integral role in the success and building of our program. He has a great coaching background, is a good recruiter and has an exceptional understanding of how we operate our program.”
Rohrssen — who replaces Pat Sandle — recruited Chris Taft, Levance Fields, Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin to the Panthers and maintains a strong reputation with AAU and high school coaches in the city and surrounding areas.
Pitt was recently involved with Christ the King guard Jon Severe, who ended up choosing Fordham over the Panthers, West Virginia and Rutgers.
A former Pitt assistant for seven years from 1999-2006, Rohrssen played a vital role in Pitt’s dramatic rise to prominence. During a five-year period, he helped guide Pitt to a 133-33 overall record (.801 winning percentage), a 59-21 Big East regular season record (.738 winning percentage), four Big East Championships (three regular season), three NCAA Sweet Sixteen berths and five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
A former head coach at Manhattan, Rohrssen also spent this past season coaching with the Portland Trailblazers D-League team.
“It’s extremely exciting to be returning to Pitt,” Rohrssen said. “We obviously want to continue and build upon the great tradition established at Pitt. The program’s success speaks for itself. It’s been an honor and I’m proud of my association with the University of Pittsburgh. I love the city of Pittsburgh and feel that it’s home. It’s a great place to be.”
