NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State head men's basketball coach Dan Muller has announced that former Redbird basketball manager John Putyrski (PUH-turr-skee) has been named the program's new video coordinator.
"We're really excited to bring John back to Illinois State in the video coordinator position," said Muller. "He did a wonderful job for us as a student-manager, and he has had great experiences in all three years that he has been out. He knows what our culture is and is excited to be back. I know he will do a great job with his role."
Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Putyrski spent the 2018-19 season as an assistant coach at Eastern Florida State College. He helped lead the Titans to a 28-8 record, and the squad advanced to the National Junior College Athletic Association National tournament quarterfinals.
"I couldn't be more excited and look forward to helping this staff, our players, and the Illinois State community for years to come," said Putyrski. "Coach Muller has built this program and established Illinois State as one of the perennial powers in the Missouri Valley Conference. To come back, learn from him, and contribute is something I don't take for granted. I am grateful to be back at Illinois State, and I'm anxious to get started."
Putyrski was named as one of the top junior college assistant coaches in the country by Coachstat.net and was praised for excelling in recruiting, teaching, game-planning, and player development. During his lone season EFSC, six student-athletes earned All-Conference honors. Also, in charge of academics at EFSC, the program recorded a program-record 3.14 grade point average.
Prior to his time at EFSC, he worked as a graduate assistant at Chattanooga and was a four-year student-manager for the Redbirds from 2011 until 2016, including serving has head manager during the 2015-16 season.
He is a 2016 Illinois State graduate with a degree in family and consumer sciences and graduated from Chattanooga in 2018 with a master's degree in public administration.
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