The University of Louisville is making waves in the college basketball world with the announcement of a new addition to their coaching staff. Tim Austing, a seasoned high school coaching veteran, is stepping into the role of special assistant to the head coach for the 2026-27 season. Austing brings a wealth of experience from his 27 years of coaching high school basketball in Ohio, and his arrival is being met with excitement and anticipation.
Head coach Kelsey couldn't be more thrilled about Austing joining the team. "Tim has always stood out as one of the brilliant minds in high school coaching," Kelsey remarked. "His insights and guidance have been invaluable to me over the years, and having him on board at Louisville is a huge win for us."
Austing himself is eager to dive into this new chapter. "Being part of the Louisville basketball program is an honor," he said.
"The tradition and passion here are unmatched, and I'm ready to contribute to the legacy Coach Kelsey has been building. It's a dream come true to work towards bringing more championships to Louisville."
Austing's resume is nothing short of impressive. He spent the last five seasons as the head coach at Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he led the team to two Greater Miami Conference Championships and clinched a district title in 2025.
This marked Sycamore's first district championship since 2004, a testament to Austing's leadership and strategic prowess. His remarkable first year at Sycamore earned him the title of GMC Coach of the Year in 2021.
Before his successful tenure at Sycamore, Austing made significant strides at Fairfield, where he was head coach for five seasons starting in 2009. During his time there, he secured two Greater Miami Conference titles and was twice named GMC Coach of the Year. His leadership took Fairfield to the 2012 OHSAA Division I Final Four, the program's first appearance in over 70 years, earning him the Cincinnati Enquirer Coach of the Year award for that achievement.
Austing's coaching journey began as an assistant coach at Elder High School, where he worked under Joe Shoenfeld. Interestingly, both Austing and Kelsey share an alma mater, having graduated from Elder High School in the early 90s. This shared history adds another layer of camaraderie and understanding to their professional relationship at Louisville.
With Austing's arrival, Louisville's basketball program is poised for an exciting future, blending rich tradition with fresh expertise and ambition. Fans of the Cardinals can look forward to seeing how this new dynamic unfolds on the court.
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That adjustment has shown up everywhere this offseason. Louisville added several defense-first transfers, brought in a five-star center prospect earlier than expected by reclassifying him into this summers group, and filled out the staff with assistants who have built their reputations on the defensive end. The idea is clear enough even if the full payoff is still to come: Kelsey is trying to make sure the Cardinals are harder to score on, especially when the games get bigger and the front line matters most. [Read more 🡒]
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Louisville Veteran Sends Strong Message About Rebuilt Offensive Line
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Robinson has been especially upbeat about the work being done by new line coach Dale Williams and the way the newcomers have fit in, saying the group has a chance to become something meaningful quickly. Louisvilles confidence is being sharpened by what it believes it can become in a pivotal year, and the early test everyone keeps circling is the opening game against Ole Miss in Nashville, where the Cardinals will find out a lot about how ready this overhaul really is. [Read more 🡒]