OGDEN -- Joe Cravens, Weber State's new head basketball coach, received good news Sunday night. Guy Beach informed him that he will remain at Weber as an assistant coach, which could mean that star players Harold Arceneaux and Eddie Gill also will stay.
Beach, who served as an assistant coach with Cravens last season, finished second to Cravens in Weber's search for a head coach and was uncertain whether he would remain with the Wildcats. As a result, Arceneaux and Gill, who played for Beach at College of Eastern Utah, indicated they would transfer."Guy called me and asked me if I still had a job (to offer)," said Cravens. "I said I did, and he said, 'Well, if it's OK with you I'll stay around.' It makes my life a lot easier."
As for the status of Gill and Arceneaux, Cravens said, "I've not heard from them, but the indications are they will stay. I should know (Monday). Both indicated that if Guy were going to be here, they were going to be here."
A source within the athletic department confirmed that both players were enrolled in school this semester and would likely remain with the Wildcats. Neither player, however, was available for comment.
Led by Gill and Arceneaux, the Wildcats won the Big Sky Conference championship and upset powerhouse North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. They narrowly missed upsetting Florida to advance to the Sweet 16.
Cravens, who replaced Ron Abegglen as head coach, met with Beach last Tuesday, and then with Beach and the two players on Wednesday, to discuss the future. "The bottom line is they're undyingly loyal to Guy. Harold said, 'Here's a guy who took me out of the projects when nobody cared about me. I'm loyal to him.' What are you going to say to that?"
Cravens had hoped that Beach would rejoin him at Weber after the two of them worked side by side throughout last season while also hoping to land the same head coaching job. Now he must hope that he will be able to keep Arceneaux and Gill, as well.