Todd Golden has past experience with associate head coach Carlin Hartman
Todd Golden aimed to assemble an elite staff after he was tabbed as head coach of the Florida Gators men’s basketball program, and one of his key hires was adding coaching veteran Carlin Hartman.
Golden announced him on April 1 when he was named associate head coach alongside Korey McCray.
“Carlin brings a wealth of experience and a highly respected track record to Florida,” Golden said upon hiring Hartman. “We’re excited to add his expertise as a basketball mind, a developer, a relationship-builder and a recruiter to our staff. He sets a great example for all of us as a family man, and he will be a tremendous mentor to our student-athletes off the court in addition to helping us collectively and individually become our best on the court.”
In a press conference last Thursday, Golden discussed his prior relationship with Hartman before bringing him onto his staff.
The two have prior experience together in the college basketball world, as Hartman worked with Golden for two seasons at Columbia.
“Carlin is someone that I’ve known my whole coaching career,” Golden said. “He was at Columbia as the associate head coach when I first got into coaching as the director of basketball ops. I’ve known him for about 12 years now. Someone that I’ve always had a really strong relationship with.”
Carlin Hartman has 22 years of experience at the collegiate level dating back to his first assistant coaching position at Rice in 1996.
One of Hartman’s more recent stops was Oklahoma with former UF head coach Lon Kruger. He was the Sooners’ primary recruiter and worked to develop the their front court.
In 2020, Hartman was named one of the top 50 most impactful high-major assistant coaches by Silver Waves Media. After Kruger retired following the 2020-21 season, Hartman spent last season as an assistant at UNLV before joining Golden in Gainesville.
“Carlin wasn’t leaving that situation unless it was what he considered really good,” Golden said. “He wasn’t just going to pick up and move again for anything else. And he was very honest, he’s like, ‘Because it’s Florida, and it’s you, I’m willing to. We’re going to do this.’ So I felt really grateful that him and Christine and their son Joseph were willing to make that move, and it just gives me a lot of confidence as a head coach, having someone like him with me.”
