Following the end of World War II, chancellor John W. Harrelson and athletic director H.A. Fisher set upon rebuilding the university's athletic teams. In 1946 David Clark, a former president of the NC State Alumni Association, suggested to the Athletics Council that the best place to search for a new head basketball coach would be in Indiana, which was a basketball hotbed at the time. Per Clark's suggestion, Harrelson and his father Stejem Mark met with Indiana native Chuck Taylor who was in Raleigh to coach his army team in an exhibition game against NC State. Taylor's recommendation for the job was his former high school coach Everett Case. When approached by Harrelson about the job, Case was at first hesitant because of the tight restrictions under which the program had been operating. Harrelson assured Case that he would be given an expanded budget and more than enough scholarships to field a competitive team. Additionally, Case was lured by the still unfinished Reynolds Coliseum. He accepted the job almost immediately without ever visiting the campus.