Rhode Island Basketball: Archie Miller introduced as Rams new head coach

The Archie Miller era has begun in Kingston! Rhode Island Basketball officially introduced him as the 21st head coach in program history.

At his introductory press conference on Monday morning, Coach Archie Miller received a warm welcome from the Rhode Island community.

“I want our Rams fanbase to know we are going to do things a certain way on and off the court,” he said.

The former Dayton and Indiana coach inherits a program formerly led by David Cox, who served as head coach for four seasons.

“This is the most ready I’ve been in my life. The most excited I’ve been,” Miller said.

The Rams have not been to the NCAA Tournament since 2018, however, Miller believes he can change the narrative of Rhode Island basketball. “Archie’s goals for this program are the same as mine. Not only do we want to win Atlantic 10 championships, but we want to build a program that competes late into March each year, URI Athletic Director Thorr Bjorn said.

Miller has an impressive resume before returning to the Atlantic 10 conference with Rhode Island. He led the Dayton Flyers to four NCAA Tournaments and two conference championships, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2014. Coach Miller also reached the NIT with the Dayton Flyers in 2012 and with the Indiana Hoosiers in 2019.

“Archie has an incredible track record of success. He is very familiar with the Atlantic 10 and is a great recruiter,” Bjorn said.

Coach Miller’s contract with the Rhode Island Rams is five years and worth $8.5 million. He instantly becomes one of the most high-profile head coaches in the A-10 and looks to make some noise early on next season.

It will be interesting to see whom Miller brings onto his coaching staff and what recruiting tactics he uses to build Rhody’s depth. We can only hope that Archie Miller is the solution to the Rhode Island Rams’ struggles they faced over the last few seasons.