Bobby Steinburg, who has long been known as one of the most highly networked and knowledgeable coaches in the game today, is now in his fifth season as a member of the Kent State coaching staff. 

The Kent State assistant was recently recognized by Basketball Times, as one of the 'Best Future NCAA Division I Head Coaches'; ranking No. 6 nationally.

Joining the program as an assistant coach prior to the 2008-09 season, Steinburg came to the Golden Flashes after spending the previous two seasons as the head coach at Motlow State (Tenn.) College.

During his tenure on the Golden Flashes staff, Steinburg’s vaunted recruiting efforts have landed the program student-athletes from across the country, including First Team NJCAA Division I All-American Chris Evans, who went on to earn First Team All-MAC accolades for the 2012-13 season.  In all Steinburg has recruited 5 All-Americans and 6 Top-100 recruits to the Kent State program in four years. 

His work at Kent State has paid huge dividends, earning the Golden Flashes postseason appearances every season he has been on staff.  Last year alone he helped the 2010-11 squad went 25-12 while becoming the first Mid-American Conference team in 21 years and just the second in 48 years to win back-to-back regular season titles outright.  Steinburg assisted with a team that featured just one senior and 10 newcomers to the line-up and led the inexperienced group at the beginning of the year to the quarterfinals of the NIT by upsetting both Saint Mary’s and Fairfield on the road of the annual postseason tournament. The book on the NIT run was finally put to a close with a tightly contested loss at Colorado, and while the 2010-11 season ended, the experience and confidence gained over the final six games only began to build the fire for what is expected to be another monumental campaign this winter.  

“Coach Steinburg has the rare combination of attitude, energy and innate basketball instincts that make him successful, says Doug Gottlieb, CBS Sports College Basketball Analyst. “His passion for his players and his desire to see them succeed in life is what I have grown to admire most. In my opinion it is no fluke that success has followed and will continue to follow Coach Steinburg.”

In his two seasons at Motlow, Steinburg turned a program that won only seven games in the season prior to his appointment into a national contender. In his first season at the helm in 2006-07, the Bucks compiled a 10-6 TJCCAA league record and a share of the Eastern Division regular season championship.  In year two, given time to bring a full recruiting class aboard, Steinburg led Motlow to a school record 28-5 mark and a No. 15 final national ranking.

From 1969-2006, Motlow men’s basketball had only sent three student-athletes to the NCAA Division I level.  In Steinburg’s two-year tenure, nine athletes moved on to college basketball’s elite level, a testament to his eye for talent on the recruiting trail, as well as his leadership in holding his student-athletes accountable in the classroom.  Included in that list are former KSU student-athletes Tyree Evans, the sixth rated recruit by Rivals.com and Frank Henry-Ala, who was ranked 71st on the list.

The 15-year coaching veteran is widely respected in coaching circles as a great teacher of fundamentals with a gift for evaluating and establishing relationships with prospective student-athletes.

“Bobby Steinburg is one of the top recruiters in the country regardless of level,” says national recruiting analyst, Jerry Mullen, “His various coaching stops and engaging personality have enabled Steinburg to forge invaluable recruiting contacts both national and world-wide.”

Prior to his arrival at Motlow, Steinburg served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of California-Davis. Given the task to assist head coach, Gary Stewart in the Aggie’s transition from NCAA Division II to I reclassification, Steinburg responded by helping sign arguably the best recruiting classes in the Big West Conference during his tenure. In addition to his recruiting efforts, Steinburg played an instrumental role in skill development, scouting, marketing and public relations of the Aggie basketball program.

From 2001-2003 Steinburg served as top assistant at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Ky. He assisted in all areas of the Knight’s program including recruiting, on floor instruction, scouting, and academic development.

Steinburg spent 2000-2001 coaching at the University of Idaho under one of the game’s great teachers, C. David Farrar. His appointment distinguished him among the youngest Division I full-time assistant coaches in the country at age 25. Prior to his stint at Idaho, Steinburg served two seasons as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Motlow. His back-to-back recruiting classes helped put Motlow in the national top-25 in the National Junior College Athletic Association for two straight seasons; a feat that has not been accomplished until the Bucks’ recent pre-season ranking of #12 by the Sporting News magazine. He began his coaching career as both a student and graduate-assistant coach under Farrar and former North Carolina Tar Heel, Randy Wiel at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

Steinburg received his bachelor's and masters degrees at Middle Tennessee State. Originally from Oswego, N.Y., he grew up in Richmond, Va.