Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun announced on Wednesday the addition of Jason Slay as an assistant coach on the Youngstown State men's basketball staff.
Prior to joining YSU, Slay spent two seasons at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) from 2015-17. In 2016-17, he mentored QJ Peterson, a 2017 All-Southern Conference First-Team selection by the media and a coaches' second-team all-conference pick.
"Jason Slay is one of the up and coming guys in the business," Calhoun said. "The thing about Jason is that he started at the bottom and has worked his way up at the Division II level, the prep school level and various Division I coaching stops.
"Jason will get us into parts of the country – North Carolina, Virginia – that I think are attractive to Youngstown State. He is very well-rounded."
Slay spent the 2014-15 season at East Tennessee State, and served as an assistant coach at Tennessee State University in 2013-14. He was the Director of Basketball Operations at Georgia Southern 2012-13.
Prior to working in the college ranks, Slay was the top assistant coach at Hargrave Military Academy where he coached 10 players that signed national letters of intent to Division I programs. He also served as the team's director of individual development and summer training and the Tigers finished with a 38-8 record and made the National Prep Showcase Elite 8 in 2012-13.
Slay also coached four years (2008-2012) at West Virginia State serving as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator, and was a part of two West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships.
As a college player at West Virginia State, Slay was a four-time captain and two-year starter and helped guide his team to the NCAA Division II Sweet 16 in 2004, 2006, and 2007.
Slay's family has deep basketball ties. His older brother Tamar played at Marshall and in the NBA for the New Jersey Nets after being drafted in the second round. His cousin, Ron, also played for Tennessee and made a trip to the Sweet 16 as a freshman in 2000.
He received his undergraduate degree in General Education from West Virginia State in 2008.
