Redefining Murphy's Law

Harvard coach Tim Murphy is enjoying rare success despite dealing with handicaps many Division I coaches might bristle at facing. He works at the nation’s oldest college, one of the world’s elite educational institutions, so Murphy and his teams must live up to traditions nearly as old as America itself. He must also recruit student-athletes who can handle academic standards that might appear impossibly high. In addition, Murphy has zero athletic scholarships to offer his players. So how does Murphy deal with these and other constraints? First, he makes a strong pitch to recruits about the school and his program. As Murphy says, “whether you’re in marketing, car sales or coaching, if you can’t sell yourself in a very sincere, clear way, you’re not going to be successful.” After he gets his players, Murphy’s teams go out and win. Since 2000, Harvard is 33-6. In 2004,