Greenberg Succeeds Harrington at Long Beach

After spending 12 years in various jobs as an assistant basketball coach, Seth Greenberg’s dream of becoming a head coach came true Thursday when he was named to succeed Joe Harrington at Cal State Long Beach.

“There’s always been a driving force inside me to be a head coach,” the 33-year-old Greenberg said before a news conference in Long Beach. “I don’t remember a time in my adult life when I didn’t want to be one.”

Greenberg has been an assistant at Columbia, Pittsburgh, Virginia, Miami and, for the last three seasons, at Long Beach under Harrington, who was introduced in Denver Thursday as the new coach of the University of Colorado.

A native of Plainview, N.Y., who hoped to be a head coach by the time he was 28, Greenberg said that he recently considered getting out of coaching and going into shopping center development in the Midwest.

But in recent weeks there were strong indications that Harrington would leave in the wake of a 23-9 season, Long Beach’s best in 16 years. And it was Harrington’s success that paved the way for Greenberg’s selection.

“In hiring (Greenberg), we maintain continuity in a program that has built a solid foundation over the last three years,” Athletic Director Corey Johnson said.

Greenberg, who said that the 49ers would continue to run, press and wear their California gold uniforms, held a team meeting Thursday.

“The first thing I did was thank the kids,” he said. “We talked about how we were 13-7 two months ago and how they made this thing happen. Their hard work put me in the place I want to be.”

Greenberg, known as a relentless recruiter, was involved in the recruiting of all the current 49ers. He is also known for devising strategy.

“He’s a real student of the game,” said Terry Holland, for whom Greenberg worked in 1984 at Virginia.

Speaking from Denver where he will attend the Final Four, Holland, who resigned as coach at Virginia, added: “He’s a tremendously positive person. I don’t think he’s met a problem he doesn’t think he can lick.”

Greenberg will take over a team that loses only three seniors.

“Joe told me he’s kind of jealous of the group I’m inheriting,” he said.

Greenberg also recalled the time three years ago when he stood in the back of a room as Harrington was introduced as coach.

“I was wondering whether Long Beach was the right place for me,” he said. “I called Terry Holland at 3 a.m. for advice. As it’s turned out, I’m a pretty intelligent guy. There’s no place I’d rather be than Long Beach State.”

Greenberg indicated that succeeding a coach as volatile and charismatic as Harrington will not be a problem.

“It’s not my job to be Joe Harrington,” he said.