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SMU announces Chris Capko as associate head coach

On3 imageby: Billy Embody04/08/24BillyEmbody
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Feb 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans guard Boogie Ellis (0) and associate head coach Chris Capko react against the Washington Huskies in the second half at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS (SMU) – SMU Head Coach Andy Enfield has named Chris Capko associate head coach for SMU Men’s Basketball. Capko was on Enfield’s staff at USC for ten seasons, including the past three years as associate head coach.

USC was 176-93 in his eight seasons as assistant or associate head coach, including four trips to the NCAA Tournament that peaked with an Elite Eight trip in 2021. Capko helped the Trojans bring in eight consecutive Top-30 recruiting classes, with the 2022 class ranking No. 7 and the 2023 class ranking No. 4. Over his final six seasons at USC, the Trojans had six players selected in the NBA Draft, tied for the 13th-most by any program in the country. USC was one of seven teams to have had at least one player selected in five of the six NBA Drafts from 2018 to 2023.

Capko, who served as the USC Director of Operations during the 2013-15 seasons, returned to the Trojans after spending the 2015-16 season as an assistant coach for Florida International University (FIU). Before he joined USC as the Director of Operations, Capko spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Georgia Southern (2011-13) and as an assistant coach at Stetson (2009-11). Before his stint at Stetson, Capko served as a graduate assistant at Marshall.

As a student-athlete, Capko spent his first semester in the basketball program at Florida under Billy Donovan. He later transferred to USF in Tampa where he played for three years. As a junior, he was fifth in the Big East in assists and as a senior he was the Bulls’ team captain. Capko earned Academic All-Big East honors as a junior and senior at USF. He was also the Bulls’ nominee for Big East Basketball Student-Athlete of the Year in 2007.

Capko earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communications at USF and a Master’s in adult and technical education from Marshall.

A native of Lakeland, Florida, Capko was a starter for Kathleen High School, which won the 2001 FHSAA 4-A State Championship. He and his wife, Miranda, have one child, Zoe Saint.

Editor’s Note: SMU press release.

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