Bio

After a legendary 16-year run as head men's basketball coach at Hillsdale College, John Tharp undertook a new challenge with Hillsdale on July 1, 2023, moving into a position of leadership over not just the basketball program, but the entire athletic department.

On July 1, Tharp officially steeped into the role of Director of Athletics at Hillsdale College, succeeding Don Brubacher, who had been in the role since 2008. In taking on the position, Tharp becomes the sixth Athletic Director in the past 69 years of Hillsdale College athletics, and is the latest in a line of distinguished and accomplished leaders to occupy the role.

 "It was a privilege to serve as the head men's basketball coach for the last sixteen years, and I am honored to continue to serve Hillsdale College as the new director of athletics," said Tharp. "I look forward to leading the athletic program and working closely with the talented coaches, staff, and student-athletes to build on the program's successes that Don has built."

Tharp served as the head coach of the men's basketball team at Hillsdale College for 16 years, building a resume in his time in charge of the program that will be difficult for anyone to match. He led the team to three conference titles and five NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, including two Sweet 16 appearances and the program's first ever NCAA DII Elite Eight appearance in 2021-22. He also was named G-MAC Coach of the Year during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 seasons.

Tharp finishes his head coaching career with 501 victories, including a program record 297 at Hillsdale, and his 66.2% winning percentage at Hillsdale is the second highest among Hillsdale basketball coaches who coached more than 70 games. In his final six seasons in charge of the program from 2017 to 2023, Tharp put together one of the best runs in program history, winning 19 or more games in all six seasons, winning two conference titles, qualifying for four NCAA DII Tournaments and making the program's first ever NCAA DII Sweet 16 appearance in 2020-21. The following year, Hillsdale had a truly historic season, finishing 23-8, making the NCAA DII Tournament for the second-straight season, winning its first-ever Midwest Regional title and reaching the Elite Eight round for the first time since joining the NCAA Division II ranks in 1990.

Tharp's tremendous success as a head coach at Hillsdale is a testament to his leadership, his attention to detail and his ability to build relationships and foster a culture of success in an organization. All of those traits made him the most compelling option to take over as Hillsdale's new Director of Athletics in 2023 after a thorough and national search by Hillsdale College.

"The college is delighted to have John Tharp serve as our new athletics director," said Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arnn. "Don Brubacher's shoes are large ones to fill, but Coach Tharp has a distinguished record as a leader for the college's basketball team — on and off the court. I have no doubt that, under his leadership, the athletic program will continue to flourish."

While serving as head coach at Hillsdale, four of Tharp's players earned Division II All-American honors: Brad Guinane (2011-12), Tim Dezelski (2013-14), Kyle Cooper (2015-16) and Patrick Cartier (2020-21 and 2021-22). A total of five players signed professional basketball contracts in Europe, with Cooper, the 2015-16 Academic All-American of the Year, being the most recent.

During his tenure, Tharp also coached a GLIAC Player of the Year in Cooper (2015-16) and a G-MAC Freshman of the Year (2019-20) and Player of the Year (2020-21, 2021-22) in Patrick Cartier. He earned numerous personal accolades as well, becoming the first men's basketball coach in program history to win conference Coach of the Year in back to back seasons (2019-20 and 2020-21), and he also became just the third coach in program history to earn NABC Division II Regional Coach of the Year honors in 2020-21.

Tharp came to Hillsdale after a very successful 13-year stint as the head coach at Lawrence University, a Division III school in Wisconsin. Tharp left Lawrence as that school’s all-time leader in victories and winning percentage, compiling a record of 204-108 during his tenure.

Starting with the 2003-04 season, Tharp guided Lawrence to three of its best seasons in school history. He led the program to three consecutive Midwest Conference championships from 2003 to 2006, and rang up an overall record of 69-12. The best of those three seasons came in 2005-06, when Lawrence went 25-1 and was ranked No. 1 in the nation among Division III teams for one month during the season. That .852 winning percentage he compiled between 2003-2006 was the best of any Division III school in the nation.

Lawrence University was Tharp's first head coaching job when he was hired at the age of 24, prior to the 1994-95 season. He spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Beloit (Wisc.) College before taking over the Lawrence program.

Tharp was named MWC Coach of the Year four times in his 13 seasons with the Vikings.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in history in 1991 at Beloit, where he was also a two-time all-conference player and led all NCAA Division III players in assists for a season. He also holds a master’s degree in education.

Prior to attending Beloit, Tharp played at Sheboygan North High School in Wisconsin, leading the Golden Raiders to the 1986 WIAA Class A state championship in boys basketball, the school's only state title in the sport.

Tharp and his wife Jennifer have three children, McKayla, Logan and Lukas.