John Tharp

Biography

John Tharp was named director of athletics on April 12, 2023. Prior to that appointment, Tharp served for 16 seasons as head men’s basketball coach at Hillsdale. In that role, he led the team to three conference titles and five NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, including two Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight appearance. He was named G-MAC Coach of the Year during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 seasons and earned NABC Division II Regional Coach of the Year honors in 2020-21. During his tenure, he coached four players who earned Division II All-American honors, one GLIAC Player of the Year, one G-MAC Freshman of the Year, and a two-time G-MAC Player of the Year. Five of his players signed professional basketball contracts in Europe. Tharp finished his head coaching career with 501 victories. His 66.2 winning percentage at Hillsdale is the second highest among Hillsdale basketball coaches who coached more than 70 games.

A native of Wisconsin, Tharp previously coached men’s basketball for 13 years at Division III Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. Tharp left Lawrence as that school’s all-time leader in victories and winning percentage, compiling a record of 204-108 during his tenure. He led the program to three consecutive Midwest Conference championships from 2003 to 2006. The best of those three seasons came in 2005-06, when Lawrence went 25-1 and was ranked No. 1 in the nation among Division III teams for one month during the season. That .852 winning percentage Tharp compiled between 2003-2006 was the best of any Division III school in the nation.

Tharp has a bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s degree in education from Beloit College, where he served as an assistant basketball coach for three years. During his playing career, he earned all-conference honors (twice) at Beloit College, and he led Sheboygan North High School (Wisconsin) to the 1986 WIAA Class A state championship, its only state title in the sport.

Tharp and his wife Jennifer have three adult children.