Tony Pujol Position: Assistant Coach

Tony Pujol recently finished his third season on the Alabama staff and second as an assistant coach after serving as the program's director of operations in 2009-10.

In his first season as an assistant for the Crimson Tide, he helped guide the squad to a 25-12 record, an SEC Western Division championship and an appearance in the NIT title game. That postseason run helped lay the groundwork for a 2011-12 season that saw the Tide make its first NCAA appearance in six years while recording a second straight 20-win season.

In each of his two seasons on the bench, the Tide boasted one of the best defenses in the nation, program history and Southeastern Conference history. In 2010-11, the Tide surrendered just 59.4 points per game, the eighth lowest average in the nation and the then 10th lowest in SEC history. As an encore, the 2011-12 team got even tougher to score on by allowing 58.1 points per game, the ninth fewest in the nation and sixth lowest in SEC history.

That tenacious defense helped make Coleman Coliseum one of the toughest places in the nation to play as the Tide posted a perfect 19-0 home record in 2010-11 and has won 32 of its last 35 games at home. Defending the home court and the renewed energy it created around the program allowed Alabama to record the fifth largest increase in attendance in the nation over the past four years.

On the recruiting trail, Pujol has helped turn Alabama into a national presence. His efforts helped the Tide land a 2011 recruiting class that rivals.com ranked as the fifth-best in the nation with four prospects ranked in the top 100 nationally.

Pujol and Crimson Tide head coach Anthony Grant have a long and dynamic relationship as Pujol served on Grant's staff at VCU for three season. The pair also both hail from Miami, Fla. and began their coaching careers as high school coaches in South Florida.

While at VCU he and Grant coached the Rams to three straight conference titles and postseason appearances including a pair of NCAA berths. Additionally, he worked with 12 all-CAA selections, two-time CAA Player of the Year Eric Maynor and helped recruit a class that was ranked No. 5 among mid-major programs.

Pujol's ties to his native South Florida also helped draw NBA lottery pick Larry Sanders to VCU along with a host of other talented players from the Sunshine State.

Pujol joined Grant's staff after two seasons at Appalachian State where he helped recruit the foundation that led to a school-record 25 wins in 2006-07. Pujol was also instrumental in obtaining the Mountaineers' Public Recognition Award, based on the program's Academic Progress Rate (APR) data released by the NCAA. Ever since, academic success has been a hallmark of programs Pujol has worked with. During each of his three seasons at VCU, the Rams boasted a multi-year APR of 950 or better and in three of the last four years for which data is available the programs have recorded multi-year APRs of 970 or better. Additionally, in 2011, three of his recruits were named to the SEC Academic All-Freshman team.

Prior to that he was a high school coach in south Florida for 13 seasons, including nine at Northwest Christian Academy in Miami, Fla., where he posted a 250-46 record and won state titles in 1999, 2003, and 2004. Pujol, a south Florida native, graduated from Sterling College (Kansas) in 1989 with a degree in business administration and was a standout in both basketball and baseball, earning all-conference honors in the latter in his final three seasons at Sterling. Pujol and his wife, Mayle, have three daughters, Kasey, Kristen and Mia.

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