Van Macon was named assistant coach at Rutgers University on June 2, 2010. He arrived “On the Banks” after spending nine seasons as an assistant coach at Hofstra University, including the final three as associate head coach.
“Van is a consummate professional and one of the top recruiters in New York City,” said head coach Mike Rice at the time of the appointment. “He has long-standing relationships with the grassroots basketball community dating back to when he was a rising player. Van has a strong reputation and deservedly so. We are very fortunate to welcome him into our program.”
Macon has 16 years of collegiate coaching experience and four seasons of collegiate playing experience on his resume.
Macon served a brief stint as associate head coach at Fordham University before signing-on with the Scarlet Knights. Macon worked under head coach Tom Pecora at both Fordham and Hofstra. He joined the Pride staff in 2001-02 after spending the 2000-2001 season as an assistant at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York.
At Hofstra, Macon served as the recruiting, scheduling and scouting coordinator. He was also responsible for offensive execution and the development of the Pride’s frontcourt players.
Macon began his college coaching career in 1995 as an assistant at SUNY-Farmingdale and then moved to Adelphi for a one-year stint as an assistant, helping the Panthers to an NCAA Division II tournament berth. In June 1997, Macon moved up to the Division I ranks as an assistant at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. He helped coach the Leopards to a 19-9 overall record, which included a regular-season Patriot League championship and a spot in the Patriot League championship game.
Macon departed Lafayette to become an assistant coach at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York. In his two seasons at Marist, the Red Foxes tallied a 30-26 record and advanced to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference semifinals in 1999 and received their highest tournament seed (#4) in 2000. Returning to Adelphi in July 2000, Macon was a part of a staff that led the Division II Panthers to a 31-1 record, the best in the country in any division.
Macon began his collegiate playing career at Nassau Community College. He was voted the Region XV and Region XV Tournament Most Valuable Player as he led Nassau to the National Junior College Athletic Association Tournament in 1990. A team captain in 1991, he earned All-Region XV accolades on his way to graduating as Nassau’s second all-time leading scorer.
After graduating from Nassau, Macon went on to Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York, where he was a medical redshirt for one season (1991-92) before transferring to Southampton College. He played at Southampton for two seasons and was team captain and Most Valuable Player as a senior. Macon graduated from Southampton in 1994 with a degree in English literature.
A native of Corona, New York, Macon and his wife Pam have two sons, Eric and Mel.
