Chu Announces Additions of Mangino, Hoynack and Caldwell to Coaching Staff for 2026-27 Season
7/27/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
RADFORD, Va. – Radford Men's Basketball Head Coach Zach Chu announced Monday morning three additions to the coaching staff for the upcoming 2026-27 season that include Larry Mangino, AJ Caldwell, and AJ Hoynack.
LARRY MANGINO – ASSISTANT COACH
Mangino joins the Radford coaching staff after most recently serving as an assistant coach with Liberty. While there, he helped guide the Flames to a Conference USA regular season and tournament championship, making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament First Round. Before his stint at Liberty, he was at Virginia for three seasons as the Director of Player Development and five years prior to that as the Director of Scouting/Recruiting. Overall, he has over 35 years of coaching experience including nine years as a head coach and two years at the NBA level.
"We are excited to have Coach Mangino on board," commented Chu. "He brings a wealth of experience both from the college and the NBA games, and is a proven winner being a part of a national championship team at the University of Virginia. I'm honored that he chose to be a part of the culture we are building here at Radford."
Prior to his stint at Virginia, Mangino served as an assistant coach with SMU from 2010-12 where his final year on the coaching staff saw the Mustangs post their best season and first postseason appearance in over a decade. Prior to that, he collected two years of NBA experience as a player development coach with the Denver Nuggets from 2008-10.
His coaching experience overlapped with fellow coaching staff member Marcus Jenkins (an '04 graduate of the Air Force Academy), as Mangino was on the Air Force coaching staff from 2000-07. With his help, the Falcons earned 2004 and 2006 NCAA Tournament bids and advanced to the semifinals of the 2007 National Invitational Tournament (NIT). Prior to his time at the Academy, Mangino spent nine seasons as a head coach at two schools. He got his first head coaching gig at Clark University from 1991-96 and followed that as head coach with nearby Ferrum College from 1996-2000.
Mangino's extensive coaching record dates all the way back to 1983 where he began his coaching career at Montclair as a graduate assistant, his alma mater where he graduated from in 1983 with his bachelor's degree in physical education. From there, he would go on to make assistant coaching stops at Yale (1984-86) and George Washington (1986-91), later earning his master's in human development from George Washington in 1996.
Mangino and his wife, Ann, have two daughters, Chelsea and Grace. Chelsea, who just recently had her first child, is the current assistant athletic director/chief of staff for men's basketball at Liberty University under head coach Ritchie McKay. Grace currently serves as the events coordinator at the city of Manassas Park, Virginia.
AJ HOYNACK – ASSISTANT COACH
Hoynack joins the Highlanders after the end of a four-year playing career plus two seasons as a graduate assistant with the High Point men's basketball program. In his time with the Panthers, Hoynack helped guide the team to one of the most successful stretches in program history. In those two seasons, his efforts helped High Point to over 60 victories, its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance, first NCAA Tournament victory over fifth-seed Wisconsin, as well as back-to-back Big South regular season and tournament titles.
"AJ adds incredible energy and a resilient work ethic to our staff," commented Chu. "He's an outside the box thinker and he has shown a unique ability to create authentic relationships with the players he works with. We are excited to add him to our staff."
As a graduate assistant, Hoynack played an integral role in opponent scouting, personnel evaluation, player development, film breakdown, practice planning, recruiting operations, academic monitoring, and the day-to-day management of the basketball program. He also coordinated individual workouts, assisted with game preparation and supported all facets of basketball operations.
Hoynack began his collegiate playing career in 2020 and played under three different coaches with the Panthers including Hall of Famer Tubby Smith, GG Smith and Alan Huss. A native of Miami, Fla., Hoynack graduated from High Point University in 2024 with a bachelor's degree in sales and a minor in sport management while completing graduate coursework in communication and business leadership.
AJ CALDWELL – ASSISTANT COACH & GENERAL MANGER
Caldwell joins the Highlanders coaching staff after most recently working with the Chattanooga men's basketball program. After spending two years as a graduate assistant working towards his eventual master's in business administration, Caldwell most recently helped behind the scenes with alumni outreach and fundraising.
"It was very apparent from the first time I spoke with AJ that we had a very aligned vision in defining a successful program within the modern landscape," commented Chu. "AJ values high character individuals to create a collective spirit to overcome all of the challenges that are present in today's college game. I look forward to working very closely with him to focus on future roster builds as well as exploring more ways that we can connect with our community and alumni."
Over those two seasons as a graduate assistant, Caldwell played a role in helping the program in a dominant stretch compiling 50 wins highlighted by an NIT Championship at the end of the 2024-25 season. The Mocs also won the Southern Conference Regular Season Championship during that memorable 24-25 campaign, not to overshadow another 20-win season in 2023-24 that ended in the Southern Conference semifinals.
Prior to his coaching career, Caldwell was a standout student-athlete at Chattanooga. Over the course of five seasons, he earned the school's record for all-time games played with 153 and ranked top 10 in program history for career assists (289) and career three-pointers (174). He was also a member of the 2021-22 Southern Conference championship squad that went on to play in the First Round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
The Sarasota, Fla. native begins his next chapter in the New River Valley this summer, joined by his fiancé Megan.
STAY SOCIAL WITH RADFORD MEN'S BASKETBALL
For all the latest on Radford men's basketball, be sure to follow the team on X (@RadfordHoops), Instagram (@radfordhoops), and "like" the team's official Facebook Page (Radford Men's Basketball).
#RiseAndDefend
LARRY MANGINO – ASSISTANT COACH
Mangino joins the Radford coaching staff after most recently serving as an assistant coach with Liberty. While there, he helped guide the Flames to a Conference USA regular season and tournament championship, making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament First Round. Before his stint at Liberty, he was at Virginia for three seasons as the Director of Player Development and five years prior to that as the Director of Scouting/Recruiting. Overall, he has over 35 years of coaching experience including nine years as a head coach and two years at the NBA level.
"We are excited to have Coach Mangino on board," commented Chu. "He brings a wealth of experience both from the college and the NBA games, and is a proven winner being a part of a national championship team at the University of Virginia. I'm honored that he chose to be a part of the culture we are building here at Radford."
Prior to his stint at Virginia, Mangino served as an assistant coach with SMU from 2010-12 where his final year on the coaching staff saw the Mustangs post their best season and first postseason appearance in over a decade. Prior to that, he collected two years of NBA experience as a player development coach with the Denver Nuggets from 2008-10.
His coaching experience overlapped with fellow coaching staff member Marcus Jenkins (an '04 graduate of the Air Force Academy), as Mangino was on the Air Force coaching staff from 2000-07. With his help, the Falcons earned 2004 and 2006 NCAA Tournament bids and advanced to the semifinals of the 2007 National Invitational Tournament (NIT). Prior to his time at the Academy, Mangino spent nine seasons as a head coach at two schools. He got his first head coaching gig at Clark University from 1991-96 and followed that as head coach with nearby Ferrum College from 1996-2000.
Mangino's extensive coaching record dates all the way back to 1983 where he began his coaching career at Montclair as a graduate assistant, his alma mater where he graduated from in 1983 with his bachelor's degree in physical education. From there, he would go on to make assistant coaching stops at Yale (1984-86) and George Washington (1986-91), later earning his master's in human development from George Washington in 1996.
Mangino and his wife, Ann, have two daughters, Chelsea and Grace. Chelsea, who just recently had her first child, is the current assistant athletic director/chief of staff for men's basketball at Liberty University under head coach Ritchie McKay. Grace currently serves as the events coordinator at the city of Manassas Park, Virginia.
AJ HOYNACK – ASSISTANT COACH
Hoynack joins the Highlanders after the end of a four-year playing career plus two seasons as a graduate assistant with the High Point men's basketball program. In his time with the Panthers, Hoynack helped guide the team to one of the most successful stretches in program history. In those two seasons, his efforts helped High Point to over 60 victories, its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance, first NCAA Tournament victory over fifth-seed Wisconsin, as well as back-to-back Big South regular season and tournament titles.
"AJ adds incredible energy and a resilient work ethic to our staff," commented Chu. "He's an outside the box thinker and he has shown a unique ability to create authentic relationships with the players he works with. We are excited to add him to our staff."
As a graduate assistant, Hoynack played an integral role in opponent scouting, personnel evaluation, player development, film breakdown, practice planning, recruiting operations, academic monitoring, and the day-to-day management of the basketball program. He also coordinated individual workouts, assisted with game preparation and supported all facets of basketball operations.
Hoynack began his collegiate playing career in 2020 and played under three different coaches with the Panthers including Hall of Famer Tubby Smith, GG Smith and Alan Huss. A native of Miami, Fla., Hoynack graduated from High Point University in 2024 with a bachelor's degree in sales and a minor in sport management while completing graduate coursework in communication and business leadership.
AJ CALDWELL – ASSISTANT COACH & GENERAL MANGER
Caldwell joins the Highlanders coaching staff after most recently working with the Chattanooga men's basketball program. After spending two years as a graduate assistant working towards his eventual master's in business administration, Caldwell most recently helped behind the scenes with alumni outreach and fundraising.
"It was very apparent from the first time I spoke with AJ that we had a very aligned vision in defining a successful program within the modern landscape," commented Chu. "AJ values high character individuals to create a collective spirit to overcome all of the challenges that are present in today's college game. I look forward to working very closely with him to focus on future roster builds as well as exploring more ways that we can connect with our community and alumni."
Over those two seasons as a graduate assistant, Caldwell played a role in helping the program in a dominant stretch compiling 50 wins highlighted by an NIT Championship at the end of the 2024-25 season. The Mocs also won the Southern Conference Regular Season Championship during that memorable 24-25 campaign, not to overshadow another 20-win season in 2023-24 that ended in the Southern Conference semifinals.
Prior to his coaching career, Caldwell was a standout student-athlete at Chattanooga. Over the course of five seasons, he earned the school's record for all-time games played with 153 and ranked top 10 in program history for career assists (289) and career three-pointers (174). He was also a member of the 2021-22 Southern Conference championship squad that went on to play in the First Round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
The Sarasota, Fla. native begins his next chapter in the New River Valley this summer, joined by his fiancé Megan.
STAY SOCIAL WITH RADFORD MEN'S BASKETBALL
For all the latest on Radford men's basketball, be sure to follow the team on X (@RadfordHoops), Instagram (@radfordhoops), and "like" the team's official Facebook Page (Radford Men's Basketball).
#RiseAndDefend
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