By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball coaching staff has been bolstered by the additions of Nashad Mackey and Jake Perrin, who both join the Skyhawk program for the upcoming 2023-24 campaign. Mackey will be an assistant coach and will work in player development while Perrin is an assistant coach in addition to director of basketball operations.
“Both Nashad and Jake are great fits for UT Martin basketball,” head coach Ryan Ridder said. “They are young, passionate guys who bring great energy to the Elam Center every day. We can’t wait to get things rolling this year with Nashad and Jake playing vital roles on our staff.”
Mackey comes to the Skyhawks from Daytona State College in Florida, where he coached current UT Martin junior guard/forward Jacob Crews last season. As an assistant for the Falcons under head coach Joey Cantens, the program won the Central Conference championship, racked up the most wins in school history (27, against just four losses), earned its highest end-of-season ranking in school history (eighth) and went 14-1 in league play to go along with an unblemished 14-0 mark at home.
The previous two seasons, Mackey served as a graduate assistant under head coach Steve Ridder (Ryan’s father) at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla. After the program did not compete during the 2020-21 campaign, the Eagles soared to a 24-10 and NCAA Division II Sweet 16 appearance in Mackey’s final year on the bench.
Mackey’s call to coach came after a stellar playing career where he pumped in 1,663 points at two familiar locations. He played his first two seasons at Daytona State College, earning All-American, conference Player of the Year, first team all-conference and all-region accolades after averaging 15.3 points and 12.3 rebounds per contest. He then transferred to Embry-Riddle where he became the only Eagle to average a double-double in a career (17.2 points, 12.2 rebounds per game). He was a two-time Sunshine State Conference honoree and left as the program’s single-season leader in rebounding (350, 12.5 per outing in 2017-18) and second-most accurate career free throw shooter (.870 in 270 attempts).
A Nassau, Bahamas native, Mackey also boasts international experience as he took part in the 2022 and 2020 FIBA Americup Qualifiers as well as the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games as part of the Bahamas National Team.
Mackey earned his bachelor’s degree in human factors psychology from Embry-Riddle in 2019 before obtaining his Master’s degree in leadership from the same institution in 2022.
Perrin joins UT Martin after a record-setting 2022-23 season on the coaching staff at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Serving as a graduate assistant under school all-time wins leader Joe Lombardi, the Hawks went 32-2 with a 21-1 record in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference play. IUP was ranked No. 1 nationally in the National Association of Basketball Coaches poll for four weeks, tallied its fourth consecutive conference championship and secured the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Tournament.
At IUP, Perrin worked with PSAC Athlete of the Year Shawndale Jones, who also received All-American accolades and a spot in the NCAA Division II Reese’s All-Star Game in March 2023. He joined Dave Morris and Tomiwa Sulaiman as All-PSAC West first team recipients.
Before his stint at IUP, Perrin was the head boys varsity coach at Punxsutawney High School for three seasons. Inheriting a team that went 0-10 in league play, he implemented gradual improvement – wrapping up his tenure with a 2021-22 squad that went 10-11 overall and advanced to the District 9 championship game.
Hailing from Brockway, Pa., Perrin also spent four years with the Dubois Dream semiprofessional organization. After he was the starting point guard for the team, he filled a variety of roles before eventually assuming the role of head coach. He assisted in landing multiple NCAA Division I and Division II student-athletes on his roster.
Perrin graduated from Penn State University DuBois with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management in 2018. He earned his Master’s degree in business administration from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2023.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information
