The Bill Herrion era has begun at New Hampshire after the university named him its men's head basketball coach on Thursday. The 47-year-old Herrion takes over for Phil Rowe, who resigned from the post earlier this month. Herrion will be the 20th head coach for the Wildcats and is known for his success at Drexel. From 1991-1999, Herrion guided the Dragons to a 167-71 record and three NCAA Tournament appearances. "I'm obviously very excited about the opportunity to be head coach at UNH," Herrion said in a release. "It's a great opportunity to get back into America East, a league that I'm very familiar with and have a lot of respect for. We are looking forward to moving this basketball program in the right direction and to compete for the championship in America East." Herrion's portfolio outweighs Rowe's 45-125 record in six seasons at New Hampshire, which registered a 9-19 mark last season. "We welcome Bill Herrion to the University of New Hampshire," school president Ann Weaver Hart said. "UNH basketball is now poised for competitive success under the experienced leadership of Bill Herrion. Coach Herrion, with a proven history of success, is an important cornerstone in getting UNH men's basketball on the same level of achievement as our other athletic programs." After Herrion's time at Drexel, he was the head coach at East Carolina University from 1999-2005. The Pirates notched a 70-98 record under Herrion.