Longtime college basketball coach Bill Courtney dead at 55

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Bill Courtney, a longtime college basketball coach who was serving as an assistant for the Temple Owls men’s team, has died, the school announced Tuesday. He was 55.

Courtney’s cause of death was not revealed. Temple described it as a “sudden passing” in its announcement.

“I was shocked and saddened to learn of the sudden passing of coach,” Temple athletic director Arthur Johnson said in a statement. “In the short time that he has been part of the Temple family, I saw the impact that he had on our program with the joy that exuded from him on and off the court. He will be missed by his immediate family, his Temple basketball family, and the greater basketball community.”

Courtney joined head coach Adam Fisher’s staff in June, bringing three decades of basketball knowledge with him.

Fisher said in a statement that Courtney’s death left him “shocked and heartbroken.”

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“Bill made such a big impact on our program in such a short time,” he added. “He was one of the most respected coaches in the country – thoughtful, prepared, and deeply committed to the game and to winning the right way. Bill made every program he touched better, and his loss is felt profoundly by everyone who knew him. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Bill’s family during this extremely difficult time.”

Courtney had been on the benches for American, Bowling Green, George Mason, Providence, Virginia, Virginia Tech and DePaul. He was a head coach at Cornell from 2010 to 2016 and was an interim head coach for Miami during the 2024-25 season.

“In over 30 years as a basketball coach, Courtney had a profound impact on his colleagues and student-athletes,” American Conference Commissioner Tim Pernetti said. “He helped lead Miami to the Final Four and programs to nine postseason tournaments, but his effect on the lives of the student-athletes and coaches who worked with him will be his ultimate legacy.”