MACON, Ga. — After declining to renew head coach Greg Gary's contract, the Mercer Bears announced who will now lead their men's basketball program.
Ryan Ridder, currently head coach at the University of Tennessee at Martin, was tapped by the athletic department to head the men's basketball team, according to a Friday night press release from the university.
"I could not be more excited to welcome Ryan, his wife Jen, and their children to the Mercer family," Mercer Athletics Director Jim Cole said. "Coach Ridder has shown throughout his career that he excels in skill development, which will help bring out the best in our returning student-athletes. I'm also confident that our fans will be energized by the brand of basketball that he will bring to Hawkins Arena as well."
They touted Ridder's 21-11 record for the 2023-24 season for the UT Martin Skyhawks.
"I want to express my gratitude to President Bill Underwood and Director of Athletics Jim Cole for their faith in me to lead the men's basketball program at Mercer University," Ridder said. "My family and I are extremely excited for this opportunity to build new relationships, as well as to build on the tradition of success that this program has already experienced. There is an immense amount of support and pride in the Mercer family, and I can't wait to meet our phenomenal young men and get to work. Go Bears!"
The press release says that Ridder played for the College of Wooster between 2003-05 but ended up transferring to Embry-Riddle University in Florida in 2005-06 where his father coached. He received a bachelor's degree in aerospace studies and then coached high school basketball.
Eventually, he would go on to coach at Bethune-Cookman before being hired by UT Martin. He'll be Mercer Men's Basketball program's 30th head coach.
A year of replacements:
The university parted ways with Gary on Monday after a disappointing season for the Mercer Bears.
"I am thankful for Coach Gary's leadership of our men's basketball program over the last five seasons," Cole said. "He has led the Bears with great integrity, and everyone at Mercer University is grateful for his service and his commitment to our student-athletes who have represented Mercer at the highest level on the court, as well as in the classroom and in the Macon community. I wish him the very best of luck in his future endeavors."
The release says Gary took over the reins of the Mercer men's basketball program on March 26, 2019, and has compiled an 81-79 (.506) record over the last five seasons, including a 47-53 (.479) mark against Southern Conference competition.
The Bears registered winning records in each of Gary's first two years at the helm, including an 18-win season that culminated with the program's first appearance in the SoCon Tournament championship game.
The Mercer Bear's have had quite a bit of turnover this year.
Even before Gary's contract was not renewed, Coach Susie Gardner told her team Saturday morning that she resigned to "pursue other coaching opportunities," according to the university's website.
A quote on the website from Gardner says she is thankful for her time at the University.
"I would like to thank Mercer University, specifically President Underwood, Jim Cole and Sybil Blalock, for believing in my vision for the women's basketball program 14 years ago," Gardner said. "We won some championships, but I am most thankful for the friendships that I made along the way. We had an amazing run with our success and I am very proud of that. I also tried to represent this university in the Macon community every day of my life. I hope I made you proud.""
Gardner's career spanned nearly one and a half decades with the University, where she secured over 250 career victories.
Her 14th season with the team came to an end in Friday's Southern Conference Tournament semifinal against top-seeded Chattanooga. She compiled a 247-189 (.567) record in over those years.
Her career had many high points, as she was named SoCon Coach of the Year four times (2015-16, 2017-18, 2018-19, 2021-22) and also became MU basketball's (men or women's) all-time winning-est coach on Dec. 4, 2022, with a 64-46 home victory over South Alabama.
"Mercer will be forever indebted to Susie Gardner for the incredible impact that she had on our student-athletes, both on and off of the court, over the course of her 14-year career here in Macon," said Mercer Athletics Director Jim Cole. "She has made significant contributions to the sport of women's basketball, and we could not be more proud of all of her accomplishments."
They have not yet hired someone to lead the women's basketball team after Gardner's announcement.
Then, head football coach, Drew Cronic, announced he was parting ways with the university to become an offensive coordinator for the Naval Academy. Mercer then tapped Mike Jacobs from Lenoir-Rhyne University to lead the program.