Ray Meyer Says He Would Consider Offers to Return to Coaching at 72

CHICAGO —  Ray Meyer, retired DePaul basketball coach, said Thursday he would consider coaching again.

In an interview with radio station WMAQ, Meyer, 72, said he would listen to offers, preferably from a medium-sized school.

“I think I would,” he said. “I haven’t thought about it too much, but I would think about it anyway.”

Meyer, a member of the Hall of Fame, won 724 games in 42 years of coaching and is fifth on the victory list for college coaches.

He coached at DePaul from 1942 through 1984, when he retired and was succeeded by his son, Joey. In his 42 years he had only five losing seasons.

Meyer said the death of his wife, Marge, in 1985, changed his outlook.

“I’m awful lonesome now,” said Meyer, who has worked as a basketball broadcaster and DePaul administrator since retiring from coaching. “I’m awful bored. If my wife hadn’t died, I’d be happier in my retirement. But basketball has been my life for so many years.”

Meyer said he would not want to go to a big-time basketball school. “It would have to be someone who has a program that they wanted to go upward with,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be a school in the national limelight. I’d like to see what I could do to bring a school back to prominence.”

Meyer has 724 NCAA Division I coaching victories. Only Adolph Rupp of Kentucky, Phog Allen of Kansas, Henry Iba of Oklahoma State and Ed Diddle of Western Kentucky won more games.