Queens men's basketball assistant coach Bobby Horodyski's earliest introduction to basketball was being a coach's son. Horodyski's father, Coach Bob Horodyski, emphasized the impact of coaches on their players while serving as a mentor at the Division 1, NAIA, and high school levels, specifically leading his sons through their high school journey. 

"I can remember running around the gym pushing a ball cart, my dad yelling at me to get off the court because his team is practicing. I've been in the gym my whole life," said Queens assistant coach Bobby Horodyski. 

Horodyski was inspired by the impact his father had on his players as a coach. 

"It was awesome, just to see from his standpoint of what you can do in one year; you can grow people, you can grow a team, you can win a lot of games," said Horodyski.  "What you can do in four years, and watch boys turn into men." 

When looking to pursue basketball at the higher level, Horodyski believed that playing at the level that he aspired to coach at would jumpstart his coaching career. Horodyski opened his college career at Marshall University, a Division I program, under former coach and current Stetson head coach Donnie Jones. In 2010, Jones left Marshall to coach at the University of Central Florida, and Horodyski followed suit.  

During his sophomore season at UCF, Horodyski served as the team manager, eager to earn his spot as a transfer student.  

"I went from a walk on to a manager because they didn't have a spot when I transferred, but I wanted to be a part of a winning program," Horodyski said. "I trusted that coach was going to help me in my future, hoping there would be an opportunity in my junior or senior year, which there was, and I became a player again."  

Horodyski's grit led him to earn the role of team co-captain, being a two-year letter winner for the Knights, and guiding his team to clinch a spot in the 2012 National Invitational Tournament.  

"Although I wasn't putting the ball in the basket, I felt that you can do all the little things to affect a positive environment without even dribbling or shooting a basketball," said Horodyski. 

This was a lesson Horodyski carried with him as he moved out west for ten years to begin building the foundation of his coaching career. 

Shortly after graduating from UCF with a degree in finance, one of his passions outside of basketball, he stepped into the role of Graduate Assistant while earning his master's in communications and journalism at the University of Wyoming. On the court, Horodyski assisted with game operations, player development, recruiting, and scouting for the Cowboys. 

His two-year stint at Wyoming from 2013 through 2015 was one of his earliest introductions to being in an office immersed in staff conversations. In his last season at Wyoming, he witnessed what it takes to be a successful program as the Cowboys secured the 2015 Mountain West Conference Tournament championship title. 

"Seeing the dynamic and seeing the inner workings of how a staff takes care of individual players, from recruiting your players on your team, to development, to alumni relations afterward," said Horodyski. 

Following his time at the University of Wyoming, Horodyski accepted a role as Director of Basketball Operations at Utah Valley University from 2015 through 2019. As the Director of Basketball Operations, Horodyski was responsible for transportation, including booking flights and hotels, while also assisting with practice schedules. 

Beyond operations, Horodyski contributed to the program's recruiting efforts, which included signing the 2016 NJCAA William B French MVP Conner Toolson. Horodyski played a key role in the program's steady improvement in the KenPom rankings, an analytics system that evaluates NCAA teams based on offensive and defensive efficiency. The Wolverines sat at 321^st and rose to as high as 92^nd within his four-year term. 

"I played for Bobby for four years and was amazed by his drive and willingness to ensure everyone around him succeeds," said Utah Valley alum and Academic All-Western Athletic Conference, Hayden Schenck.  

In 2019, Horodyski continued his climb in college basketball, joining the staff at BYU as the Director of Basketball Operations. While his responsibilities remained the same, Horodyski was tasked with being the game scheduling co-coordinator, NIL Liaison, and the Academic Liaison. During Horodyski's time, BYU reached the NCAA tournament after missing it for four consecutive seasons. 

During his time at BYU, Horodyski played a role in helping the Cougars produce one West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year in Matt Haarms, five First Team All-WCC selections, three Second Team All-WCC products, and two All-WCC Freshman Team standouts.  

In 2023, Horodyski returned to the East Coast to join Queens University of Charlotte as an assistant coach, a spot he was familiar with as his younger brother, Jonathan Horodyski, played for the Royals from 2017-2020. This past season, Horodyski served as the defensive coordinator and game scheduling coordinator for the Royals. In his first two seasons in Charlotte, Horodyski spearheaded the program's recruiting efforts.

The transition from working in operations to the role of assistant coach and defensive coordinator meant a significant shift in responsibilities, mindset, and day-to-day engagement with the team. 
 
"Now, as the defensive coordinator, there are so many decisions in my hands that allow me to help coach Leonard on that side of the ball, which results in wins and losses," said Horodyski. "It's awesome, but there is more pressure that results in the success or failure of the program."   

This past season, Horodyski helped Queens produce their first-ever 20-win season in Division I. In his role, Horodyski helped develop the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and the nation's leading shot blocker in Malcolm Wilson. Across his three seasons in Charlotte, Horodyski has helped develop three Second Team All-ASUN selections, one Third Team All-ASUN player, and two All-ASUN Freshmen. 

"Bobby is one of a kind," said former Queens basketball player Leo Colimerio. "He is one of the hardest-working dudes in the industry. Bobby is the type of coach that goes above and beyond for all his players, and he pushed me to be a better player every single day."  

To further fulfill his goal to be a head coach, Horodyski attended the Jay Bilas Coaches Education Program this summer. Horodyski was one of 12 coaches selected, and the second current coach from Queens to attend. Royals head coach Grant Leonard participated in the inaugural cohort in 2019.  

Jay Bilas' Coaches Education program splits into two different tracks: the coaches development program and the coaches leadership program. The coach's leadership program was designed to refine the leadership skills of assistant coaches at the Division I level to assist in their development as aspiring head coaches in the future. 

"I had known the caliber of coaches that had gone through that program before and where they're at now, and that is a really impressive list," said Horodyski.   

The workshops Horodyski attended ranged from media training with local news reporters to conducting interviews with Division II and III coaches in the first-tier coaches development program. 

When entering into the role of a head coach, Horodyski emphasized how he learned more about the multi-faceted nature of the job and how being a coach is similar to being the CEO of an organization. 

An exercise that Horodyski participated in instructed him to list every possible thing he believed a head coach had to do. Beyond the 12 players and 31 games, Horordyski's eyes were opened to how much more goes into being a head coach.  

"It was like .5% basketball and 99.5% leadership," Horodyski said. "There were multiple people who spoke who weren't a basketball coach, who were a CEO or president of a company. At the end of the day, a head basketball coach is running a mini Fortune 500 company." 

Danny Morrison, the former President of the Carolina Panthers, gave a message that resonated with Horodyski. Morrison stated, "Success equals a few simple disciplines practiced every single day."
 
Throughout the program, there were workshops that simulated real-world experiences as a head coach. A workshop led by local reporter Michelle Boudin challenged Horodyski to face the press in an in-depth media training session. Horodyski practiced answering controversial questions that put him on the spot. 

"It was really interesting to be under that light and microscope at a moment's notice and having to be prepared for that because you don't get that practice as an assistant coach," Horodyski said. 

Other notable people present throughout the workshop included Jay Bilas, Alan Stein, Seth Greenberg, Will Wade, Kevin Eastman, and Queens head coach Grant Leonard.
  
The skills Horodyski gained translate into his existing mission as a coach. Walking away from the clinic has allowed Horodyski to transfer skills to not only help build himself, but the Royals team as well.   

"As a coach, you get to instill discipline, structure, integrity, and so many different things into these young men," said Horodyski. "They get to go on and hopefully make the world a better place, and we get to do that through basketball. Like, how fascinating it is that we get to hopefully leave our mark on the next generation through, in my humble opinion, the best sport in the world."