By Joshua Parrott, Sports Writer
The sharp look of fresh paint. The slick appearance of a new court design. The originality of the new Lone Star Conference logo.
If you took a second to glance at the floor of Moody Coliseum during Opening Chapel, you may have observed a few noticeable changes, not to mention all the cameras, flowers and sashes throughout the crowd.
The face-lift Moody has undergone is somewhat similar to the renovations that have taken place over the past year within the ACU Athletic Department.
Let’s start at the top with the return of former men’s head basketball coach Shanon Hays to ACU, but instead of roaming the sidelines as a coach, he assumes the responsibility as the director of athletics.
Despite a successful tenure by former Director of Athletics Stan Lambert, the return of Hays brings a youthful and energetic en-thusiasm to an athletic de-partment that topped the Lone Star Conference and ranked 13th overall in the country among Division II schools.
Hays also brings a recognizable appeal to the program, considering he spent two years as an assistant coach at Texas Tech.
Jared Mosley, former ACU basketball standout, was named assistant director of athletic operations, and head volleyball coach Brek Horn takes over as senior woman administrator following the departure of Sylvia Barnier to Minnesota State University at Moorhead.
In one of the biggest hires in recent memory, former ACU football player Klint Pleasant was hired to replace the departed Mike Martin as head men’s basketball coach. Pleasant had a chance to move from Mid-American Conference power Kent State to Southeastern Conference power University of Arkansas, but chose to stay at Kent State in hopes of acquiring a head coaching position. When ACU called, he was ready to go.
Fellow coaches have nothing but praise for the 27-year-old Michigan native.
“You can’t measure Klint’s experience with age,” said Stan Heath, current head men’s basketball coach at the University of Arkansas. “He has been a part of championships-factor that together with his great passion and he’s going to do a fantastic job.”
Heath,head coach at Kent State during Pleasant’s tenure with the Golden Flashes, said Pleasant was a “guy I really felt comfortable with on or off the court.”
The easy-going yet demanding Pleasant will be a distinct positive for the men’s basketball program, considering he is inheriting a program with a combined 13 victories in the past two seasons.
Moody looked great with a refreshing new look.
Just like the ACU athletic department.
