Cabrera returns to his alma mater with 12 years of coaching experience at various ranks under his belt. He comes back to TTU from UT Chattanooga, where he spent four seasons under head coach John Shulman. Shulman was a former assistant coach at Tennessee Tech under Jeff Lebo.

While at UT Chattanooga, he helped coach the Mocs to two Southern Conference North Division titles in 2008-09 and 2010-11. The 2008-09 team would go on to win the SoCon Tournament and gained a berth into the NCAA Tournament, the tenth appearance in the tourney in school history.
 
Known for his strong reputation as a recruiter and evaluator of talent, Cabrera served as head coach at Lackawanna for four years prior to his stint at UTC. He accumulated a record of 100-28, winning two region titles.  His 2007-08 squad went 22-9 and lost in the region semifinals.Cabrera was named region Coach of the Year in 2005 and 2006 and coached three NJCAA All-Americans and eight All-Region players.

Cabrera also logged two years as an assistant coach at Keystone College in 2003 and 2004, and spent the 2001-02 season as an assistant for Miami (Fla.) Killian High School. Cabrera was also head coach and athletics director for one season (1998-99) at Volunteer Christian Academy in Sparta, Tenn.

As a collegiate player, Cabrera transferred to Tennessee Tech after two seasons at Vincennes University in Vincennes, Ind., where he played with future NBA players Shawn Marion (Miami Heat) and Tyrone Nesby (Washington Wizards). He played two seasons in Cookeville under head coach Frank Harrell, who currently serves as TTU’s associate athletic director. Following his senior season, Cabrera was named the Golden Eagles MVP and earned the Sam Harley Lynn Award.

After finishing his Multidisciplinary Studies degree in 1999, Cabrera served as a graduate assistant at Tennessee Tech following his playing career as a Golden Eagle for then head coach Jeff Lebo. Cabrera worked one season on Lebo’s staff and earned his master’s in Instructional Leadership from TTU in 2001.

His father Hugo Cabrera, Sr., is in the Dominican Republic’s Hall of Fame and was voted its “Player of the Century”.  Rick has also played professional basketball in the Dominican Republic.

Cabrera is married to the former Danielle Olker of Queens, N.Y.  The couple has a daughter, Mikayla, and two sons, Jaden and Braxton.