Bio

Twitter: @CoachMattGrahn

Hometown: 

Bremerton, Wash.
Education: 
BA Eastern Washington University 2003
M.Ed. Concordia University Texas 2010

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Matt Grahn was named the 17th head coach of the University of Dallas men's basketball program on July 16, 2021. The longtime assistant coach grabs his first head coaching opportunity at the collegiate level after working by the side of former coach Jarred Samples, who was named Athletics Director on July 1.

The Crusaders posted a 7-17 overall record and a 5-11 conference record in Grahn's first season at the helm.  The fight for a spot in the postseason came down to the final game of the season, but the Crusaders would just miss out on the final seed in the SCAC tournament.

Grahn was the recruiting coordinator for the University of Dallas Athletics Department for the past nine years. He assisted in recruiting efforts for all 15 of the NCAA Division III varsity athletic programs.  Grahn completed his 10th season as a volunteer assistant coach on Samples' staff at the University of Dallas. His main duties include coordination of recruiting and post player development.

From 2007-2010, Grahn was an assistant coach at Concordia University (Texas), where he was instrumental in orchestrating an offense which led the American Southwest Conference (ASC) in scoring all three years (top 12 in NCAA-III). Grahn helped Concordia reach the ASC Conference Tournament all three years -- the team finished as a runner-up in 2008.

Before joining Stan Bonewitz at Concordia, Grahn spent three of the previous four seasons at Texas Lutheran University working under Tom Oswald.  The Bulldogs would go on to lead the ASC in scoring and defense in 2004 and 2005 with Grahn on the staff.

The 2005-06 season took Grahn to NCAA Division I McNeese State University as an assistant coach. The Cowboys led the Southland Conference in steals per game and were seventh in the nation in that category. Grahn also aided the Cowboys in obtaining the highest GPA in six seasons.

Grahn spent the 2002-03 as an assistant under J.T. Locklear at Seminole State College in Oklahoma. He helped recruit and sign Michael Neal, who ended up finishing his playing career at the University of Oklahoma.

From 2000-2002, Grahn worked as an assistant for Ray Giacoletti at Eastern Washington University (EWU). Grahn worked with the post players, while completing his undergraduate degree.

The 1999-2000 season at Moscow (Idaho) High School was Grahn’s first experience as a head coach. The Bears finished 14-10 and second in Idaho's District 1/2. Grahn's team was three points shy of a state playoff berth to eventual state tournament finalist, Timberline.

From 1994-2000, Grahn served in numerous capacities from video coordinator to director of basketball operations at Washington State University (WSU). During his time at WSU, Grahn worked for head coach Kevin Eastman. The Cougars advanced the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) quarterfinals in 1995, while leading the country in field goal percentage. In 1996, WSU made it the second round of the NIT.

In 2011, Grahn became a certified trainer for the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA). PCA is a nonprofit organization founded at Stanford University with the mission to transform youth sports so sports can transform youth. PCA was created to transform the culture of youth sports to give all young athletes the opportunity for a positive, character-building experience.

Grahn graduated from Olympic High School in Silverdale, Wash., where he earned Most Inspirational honors his senior year. Grahn was married in May 2007 to the former Katheryne Hickman and the two have a daughter, Harleigh and two sons, Easton and Jameson.