After back-to-back underwhelming seasons, Fordham fired its head coach, Keith Urgo, on Thursday and has now hired Mike Magpayo from UC Riverside.
Fordham’s men’s basketball team won a combined 25 games in the past two seasons. They had a 13-20 record last year, followed up with a 12-21 campaign this year, losing their final eight regular-season games to finish last in the Atlantic 10 with a 3-15 record in league play.
Mike Magpayo Brings Winning Pedigree and Familiarity to Fordham Rebuild
Fordham’s last NCAA appearance was in 1992, and they have had six full-time coaches since then. However, they have a budget that is expected to provide a comfortable environment for Magpayo to thrive.
Fordham hired Magpayo after Rob Senderoff turned them down in favor of an extension at Kent State. Magpayo signed as head coach at Fordham on March 28, 2025.
Magpayo left UC Riverside with a winning record—89-63 in five seasons—and is coming to Fordham with glowing reviews from past associates.
“Mike is a doer,” said former Columbia coach Kyle Smith, who is now at Stanford. “He is not afraid of any challenges. His emotional intelligence plus his passion for the game are perfect for this era of college athletics.”
Magpayo was an assistant coach for 10 years, serving at three colleges (Columbia, Campbell, and UC Riverside). He was the director of operations at San Francisco during the 2017-18 season.
Magpayo was named head coach at UC Riverside in July 2020 after head coach David Patrick left to join Arkansas. The 45-year-old became the first NCAA Division I head coach of full Asian heritage. He’s the founder and president of the Asian Coaches Association.
He led the Highlanders to a 14–8 record in his first season, and Magpayo signed a five-year extension with UC Riverside in May 2021. He led Riverside to a 14-8 finish in his first season and a 16-12 record in his second year.
Magpayo and the Highlanders won 22 games in his third season. He won the Big West Coach of the Year award in 2023, becoming the first UC Riverside coach to win the award. He also went 14-6 in league play in two of the past three seasons.
Magpayo has worked in New York before having spent four years at Columbia, so he is returning to a familiar environment.
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