Franklin College names Lebowitz men’s hoop coach

With college basketball teams in a weird place right now coming off of a truncated season, Franklin College decided not to compound that uncertainly by making sweeping changes within its own program.

Brian Lebowitz, who had served the last six seasons as an assistant under longtime coach Kerry Prather, was introduced as the Grizzlies’ new head coach by interim athletic director Lance Marshall on Wednesday.

“It’s been a great six years learning from coach Prather,” Lebowitz said. “I’ve had a lot of opportunity to work with a lot of great players and coaches, and I’m just really excited to get the opportunity.”

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A three-time all-conference player at Kenyon College before graduating in 2014, Lebowitz joined Prather’s staff later that year. His predecessor was thrilled about the decision to elevate him into the top spot.

“Brian Lebowitz is a rising star in the coaching profession, and I am excited that his rise will continue here at Franklin,” said Prather, who stepped down this winter to become the president of the college. “His personal, caring approach with student-athletes is obvious from the unanimous endorsement of his promotion by the returning players and the excitement of incoming freshmen.”

Lebowitz, who will also serve as an assistant athletic director, held the role of associate head coach this past season as the Grizzlies enjoyed their best season in more than a decade, going 17-9 overall and earning a share of the HCAC regular-season championship.

The plan is to continue building on that success.

“There’s a lot of things we did with coach Prather that I loved,” Lebowitz said, “and there’s some things that I want to change. More than anything else, we have a really great group of guys coming back, a lot of talented players, and I’m just really excited to work with them and also pick their brains about what’s worked, what we need to improve on and all those things.”

Lebowitz has had to navigate a challenging time on the recruiting trail, trying to fill out next season’s roster while not only going through a coaching change but also working under strict limitations due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Despite those constraints, he’s confident that next year’s freshman class will be a strong one.

“We’re really fortunate and blessed that a lot of kids have bought in to what we’re trying to sell,” Lebowitz said. “It’s been a little bit weird — we haven’t been able to have kids on campus when we traditionally would, but I think we have a lot to offer, and that’s helped us overcome some of that stuff.”