Salem University Athletics

Robert Ford enters his second year as Salem University head men's basketball coach and his fourth year overall on the Tiger sidelines. Ford served as Tiger assistant coach in 2017-18 and was promoted to associate head coach in 2018-19.

Salem posted an 18-8 record in 2019-20, marking the first time in 14 years the Tigers recorded at least 17 wins in back-to-back seasons. The Tigers also compiled an 11-game winning streak during the season, Salem's longest since opening the 2001-02 season with a 13-0 mark.

Ford coached the East Coast Athletic Conference Division II Men's Basketball Player of the Year in Jordan Forbes, who ranked 27th in the nation with a 21.5 points per game scoring average. Forbes scored a career-high 42 points - two points shy of matching a T. Edward Davis Gymnasium single-game record - to lead Salem to a 95-93 victory over Alderson Broaddus after the Tigers trailed by as many as 23 points.

Ford helped the Salem men’s basketball program to a monumental turnaround in the 2018-2019 season. Prior to Ford’s arrival, the program had a two-win season. The 2018-2019 Tigers won 17 games, the most since 2005 when the team reached the Championship Game of the NCAA Division II East Regional. Ford was instrumental in helping to develop Malik Toppin, who was a two-time First Team All East Coast Athletic Conference selection. He scored more than 1,000 points and grabbed more than 500 rebounds in his two-year career at Salem.
 
Prior to arriving at Salem, he was the assistant coach at Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) in San Antonio, Texas. In his two seasons with the Saints, Ford helped OLLU reach many program milestones.
 
He was instrumental in the development of the program’s only First Team All-America, Joe Jackson.  He also helped the Saints to a 22-9 overall record and the school’s first appearance in the Elite 8 of the NAIA National Tournament.  During his tenure, the team was consistently ranked in the top 25 nationally, reaching as high as No. 7.  While at OLLU, Ford was responsible for all pre-/post-season workouts, on-court coaching, monitoring academic progress and developing game plans and scouting reports for opponents.
 
Before his two years in San Antonio, Ford was an assistant coach for one year at Paris Junior College, helping PJC reach the Region 14 tournament for the 16th consecutive season.  Five players signed Division I scholarships from that team and all seven sophomores went on to play at four-year universities.
 
Prior to his time at Paris Junior college, Ford spent one season at Neosho County Community College in Chanute, Kansas. While at Neosho, he helped guide the Panthers to a 21-11 overall record. The Panthers advanced to the second round of the Region VI tournament for the first time in eight years. He also served as recruiting coordinator and was responsible for all pre-/post-season workouts, monitoring academic progress and developing game plan/scouting reports for opponents.
 
At Neosho, Ford helped develop two freshman student-athletes who were All-KJCCC selections, one of whom was Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Region VI selection Joseph Acuil (Baylor signee). Five players from that Panthers team signed with Division I schools. Ford was instrumental in developing a high-powered offense that averaged more than 95 points per game in 2013-2014 – the fifth best overall among all NJCAA programs. The team ranked in the top 10 nationally in free throw attempts per game and 3-point field goal percentage.
 
Prior to Neosho, Ford spent two seasons at Texas A&M University-Commerce, where the Lions advanced to the Lone Star Conference tournament each year. While on staff he had two of his players named First Team All-Conference, two Academic All-Americans and two Academic Players of the Year. In addition to his on-court coaching duties, Ford served as camp director and oversaw the team’s academic progress. He spent time recruiting and developing game plan/scouting reports. He was also in charge of all film exchange responsibilities and coordinating travel.
 
Ford began his coaching career with two years as an assistant varsity and head junior varsity boys’ basketball coach at Grand Rapids Christian High School.
 
Ford played collegiately for two years at Eastern Michigan University from 2005-2007. He then transferred to the University of South Alabama for his final two seasons. While at South Alabama, the 2007 Jaguars set a school record, winning 26 games on the season. The Jags were Sun Belt regular season champions and received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Ford has a bachelor’s degree in communications from Eastern Michigan University and a master’s degree in higher education administration from Salem University.

On March 1, 2020, Ford and his wife Annette became parents of a baby boy, Lennox.