Report: FSU hoops hires R-Jay Barsh as assistant coach

After the departure of Charlton “CY” Young to the Missouri Tigers to join former FSU assistant Dennis Gates, Florida State Seminoles basketball has added R-Jay Barsh to its staff, hiring him away from the Boise State Broncos.

Barsh has a longtime history with head coach Leonard Hamilton — via Jay Tust of KTVB in Idaho, Florida State agreed to play two exhibition games against Southeastern University while Barsh coached there, and Hamilton has been an advocate for Barsh ever since, even helping him land his gig at Boise State.

Additionally, Barsh helped train and mentor former Seminoles hooper and NBA player Dwyane Bacon.

Stay tuned to Tomahawk Nation for further analysis on what this hire means for the Seminoles moving forward.

His bio, via Boise State:

R-Jay Barsh has spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the Boise State men’s basketball program. Barsh, originally from Tacoma, Wash., has helped the Broncos post two 20-win seasons and consecutive postseason appearances. Barsh made an immediate impact on and off the court for the program as a coach, teacher, mentor and motivator.

In 2021-22, the Broncos set program bests for total wins (27), conference wins (15) and consecutive wins (14) on their way to winning the Mountain West regular-season title outright and capturing the Mountain West Tournament crown - both firsts for the program.

Barsh is a trusted leader within the program and beyond. Away from basketball, Barsh has impacted the Boise State community through serving on numerous athletic department and campus-wide committees and boards.

Prior to arriving in Boise, Barsh spent the previous seven seasons as the head coach at Southeastern University (NAIA) in Lakeland, Fla. While with SEU, he led the Fire to three NAIA Division II National Tournament appearances, the first for the program in school history. In his second season, SEU went 27-7 and reached the NAIA Fab Four during its first postseason tournament run, ultimately earning Barsh a nod as a finalist for the Don Meyer National Coach of the Year Award. Barsh also led the Fire to tournament appearances following the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

“Player development has always been an important part of our program, so we searched the country far and wide and feel like we hit a home run with the hiring of R-Jay Barsh,” Rice said. “Our student-athletes are going to benefit tremendously from his coaching background and track record of developing players.”

“I couldn’t be more thrilled to join this staff,” Barsh said. “I wasn’t necessarily looking for a new job, but the opportunity to work for coach Rice, to be part of this program and live in this city – this was something I couldn’t pass up.”

Barsh helped lead TCC to three Western Region titles in four seasons, and an NWAACC championship in 2012. The Titans also made the Elite 8 in the NWAACC Tournament in 2009. Prior to his tenure at TCC, he spent one season at Lincoln High School (Tacoma), where he helped guide the school to the state’s Final Four and a record of 26-5.

Barsh also served as an assistant coach at the University of Puget Sound, his alma mater, from 2005-07. In his first season with the Loggers, the program finished with a 26-5 mark and a NCAA D-III Elite Eight appearance.

Barsh played collegiately for TCC from 2001-03, where he helped lead the Titans to a record of 30-3 and an NWAACC title (2001-02). He was an all-conference honoree the following season.

Barsh earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from UPS in 2007.

He and his wife, Christy, have two sons, Carson and Greyson.