Rest in Peace, Jerry Krause

Jerry Krause was not only a legendary name in the Inland Northwest but a well-known pioneer throughout the basketball world.

Krause was the head men’s basketball coach for Eastern Washington for 17 seasons from 1967-85, finishing with a 262-195 overall record. He was inducted into their Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.

He would later spend 20 years in operations roles at Gonzaga University before being named the Director of Basketball Operations between 2001 and 2015.

As an executive, Krause became the research committee chairperson for the NABC in 1966. While continuing to hold his research chair until the 2010s, he was the rules chair for NCAA basketball in the late 1980s. In 1992, he co-invented a tool to measure the tension of basketball rims.

“I am sad to hear the news about Jerry, but what a life he had,” GU Men’s Basketball Head Coach Mark Few said. “He had a big impact on all of us, especially Dan Monson, me, Billy Grier, Leon Rice, and those of us that kind of came up as young coaches back in the day. That’s a great thing about Jerry, he had such a big impact on the game of basketball after his head coaching was done. He was a coach, a mentor, a friend, a teacher, and an author. I think he’s far and away the most published guy on basketball. He was also an incredible clinician. He was doing clinics up to the very end. He was at the Final Four this year doing a clinic.”

Krause joined the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022. he recently passed away of colon cancer on May 24, 2023, at his home in Cheney, Washington. May his soul forever rest in peace.

Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area... Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho