April 30, 2016
AUBURN, Ala. - Chad Dollar, a 20-year Division I assistant with strong ties to the southeast, has been named an assistant coach for Auburn basketball, head coach Bruce Pearl announced Saturday.
The Atlanta native comes to Auburn after being at Georgia Tech the previous five seasons under head coach Brian Gregory, the last two as associate head coach. He was instrumental in recruiting most of the players on Tech's roster, and in the on-court development of the Yellow Jackets' perimeter players. Last season, the Yellow Jackets went 21-15 and reached the NIT quarterfinals in 2015-16.
"We are very fortunate that a coach of Chad Dollar's caliber and experience was available," said Pearl. "His resume speaks for itself. He will have tremendous impact on our player development on and off the court, and our ability to continue to recruit the best players in the southeast.
"In adding Chad to our staff, I am able to continue to surround my student-athletes with great men, great teachers, great fathers and great coaches."
Dollar was an assistant at Wichita State in 2010-11 when the Shockers won the NIT, went 29-8 and finished second in the Missouri Valley Conference under head coach Gregg Marshall.
Prior to Wichita State, he spent three seasons as an assistant under John Brady, one at LSU in 2007-08 and two at Arkansas State as associate head coach from 2008-10. Dollar was an assistant at Murray State in the 2006-07 season and was an assistant at Georgia Southern for four years from 2002-06.
He was associate head coach at Eastern Kentucky in 2001-02 and spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Western Carolina from 1999-01.
"There are only a few schools in the country where I always dreamed of coaching, and Auburn is one of them," said Dollar. "Growing up, I watched Auburn basketball and spent a lot of time at Auburn through the years with my dad being a high school coach and having a few of his former players play at Auburn. It is like a dream come true to coach at Auburn and coach with one of the best coaches in the country in Coach Pearl. I am very excited about this opportunity, and I am looking forward to the success that lies ahead for Auburn basketball."
Dollar began his coaching career at Gardner-Webb as a graduate and volunteer assistant for two years and spent a year as a graduate assistant at Southern Miss. He also worked two summers as an assistant coach with Athletes in Action.
He had a standout prep career at Atlanta's Douglass High School and was one of seven players on the team to sign with an NCAA Division I school. His brother, Cameron, is the head coach at the University of Seattle and starred at UCLA. His father, Don, was a longtime high school coach in the Atlanta area, spending most of his time at Douglass High School.
"My dad coached Chris Morris, who played with Chuck Person, Derrick Dennison and Terry Martin," said Dollar. "I was always down here for basketball camps and basketball games. I learned the game by watching Auburn basketball and watching some of the coaches who coached Auburn basketball. I learned the game because I was down here at a young age during that time."
Dollar played his first three seasons at South Florida on NCAA and NIT tournament teams before transferring to Milligan for his final season. He received his bachelor's degree in sociology from Milligan in May 1996.
Dollar and his wife, Kyla, have three children, Aliyah, Darian and Chloe.