Jeff Borzello
ESPN Staff Writer
The coaching carousel started spinning earlier than usual this season, with jobs at Penn State and Wichita State opening before the season even began and Boston College and Fordham making moves with more than a month left in the season. Wichita State has since promoted interim head coach Isaac Brown to the permanent job, but the other three positions are still open -- and they aren't the only ones.
After last year's coaching carousel saw fewer than 30 changes in a cycle impacted by the coronavirus pandemic -- as opposed to the usual 50-60 -- we're expecting a busier carousel this season. But how busy?
To get you prepared for the next two months of coaching changes, here's a look at the biggest storylines, jobs and names to watch.
Big-picture storylines to watch
1. Will it be a busy carousel?
Had you asked this question at the start of the season, I would have said no. Last spring saw the fewest coaching changes in a decade, and the financial and other challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic haven't gone away.
That said, take note of what happened in college football, where Auburn paid Gus Malzahn more than $21 million to leave and South Carolina paid Will Muschamp nearly $13 million to make a change. Granted, football is a bigger money-driver to SEC schools than basketball is at most places, but it showed that the money is there. Universities might have lost money during the past year, but many wealthy donors didn't. Some schools might give their head coaches a pass for slight underperformance during a pandemic-impacted season, but I don't expect the cycle to be as quiet as a year ago.
2. NCAA/FBI investigations
We've been discussing how the FBI and NCAA investigations into college basketball corruption might affect the coaching carousel for three-and-a-half years now, and it hasn't really made much of an impact. So it doesn't make a ton of sense to delve here into whether LSU and Will Wade or Kansas and Bill Self or anyone else will be hit with penalties this offseason. It's impossible to predict the timeline of the NCAA's investigations, and since the affected schools have backed their coaches since the initial FBI investigation was made public in September 2017, we'll continue to assume they're not going anywhere. There's one name connected to the scandal that we will discuss, but more on that later.
3. NBA opportunities
Will any college coaches leave for the NBA, or vice versa? The NBA-to-college route hasn't worked out for most schools, but the success of Juwan Howard at Michigan this season could make it an attractive option for athletic directors. On the other side, the last college-to-NBA move was John Beilein going from Michigan to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and that didn't work out. But Brad Stevens has done well with the Boston Celtics -- this season's struggles notwithstanding -- so it's not an idea that's completely off the table. Given that the NBA season isn't ending until the summer, the possibility of a late move is something to keep in mind.
Jobs already open
Boston College: The Eagles got a jump start when they fired Jim Christian in mid-February. Since then, there have been a number of names linked to the job, although Richmond's Chris Mooney, Purdue assistant Micah Shrewsberry, Cleveland State's Dennis Gates and St. Bonaventure's Mark Schmidt have been mentioned consistently. The expectation is the Eagles would take a big swing at someone like John Beilein, Seton Hall's Kevin Willard or maybe Dayton's Anthony Grant before moving on to the next group. People began connecting dots to Loyola Chicago's Porter Moser, whose time with the Ramblers overlapped with that of current BC athletic director Pat Kraft, but my understanding is Moser is not interested in the job at this point.
Penn State: Pat Chambers resigned in October following an investigation into his conduct, and the Nittany Lions appointed Jim Ferry as the interim boss. It sounds like they've recently started to dive into the search, with some emerging names including Gates, Shrewsberry, Michigan assistant coach Saddi Washington and Vermont's John Becker. One interesting name mentioned by sources was Montana's Travis DeCuire, whose time as an assistant coach at Cal overlapped with the Berkeley leadership of Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour. The Nittany Lions also reached out to former Ohio State coach Thad Matta, but that didn't gather much steam. Keep an eye on Shrewsberry here.
Fordham: The Rams moved on from Jeff Neubauer in late January and are set to begin a long list of interviews this week. Part of the delay had to do with athletic director Ed Kull recently being elevated from interim athletic director to the permanent job. There's some talk that Kull's preference is to hire a sitting head coach, but interviews won't be limited to that pool. Some names mentioned with the Rams job include Siena's Carmen Maciariello, Bryant's Jared Grasso, St. Peter's Shaheen Holloway, Vermont's John Becker, Bowling Green's Michael Huger, Colgate's Matt Langel, Louisville assistant Luke Murray, Villanova assistant Kyle Neptune and Kentucky assistant Tony Barbee.
New Mexico: This one opened last week, with the school announcing Paul Weir was out at the end of the season. It's a destination with past success and a passionate fan base, but also one that's going on seven years without an NCAA tournament appearance and questions regarding the salary pool. Frank Martin's name has been linked to the job because of his relationship with athletic director Eddie Nunez, but I don't see it happening. Two more practical names I heard are former Nebraska head coach Tim Miles and Pacific head coach Damon Stoudamire, and another intriguing one emerging is Richard Pitino, should he part ways with Minnesota. Illinois assistant Orlando Antigua is another name.
Others currently open: Albany, Denver, Northern Illinois, Portland, Tennessee-Martin, Texas State, UC Riverside, UTRGV.
ESPN Staff Writer
The coaching carousel started spinning earlier than usual this season, with jobs at Penn State and Wichita State opening before the season even began and Boston College and Fordham making moves with more than a month left in the season. Wichita State has since promoted interim head coach Isaac Brown to the permanent job, but the other three positions are still open -- and they aren't the only ones.
After last year's coaching carousel saw fewer than 30 changes in a cycle impacted by the coronavirus pandemic -- as opposed to the usual 50-60 -- we're expecting a busier carousel this season. But how busy?
To get you prepared for the next two months of coaching changes, here's a look at the biggest storylines, jobs and names to watch.
Big-picture storylines to watch
1. Will it be a busy carousel?
Had you asked this question at the start of the season, I would have said no. Last spring saw the fewest coaching changes in a decade, and the financial and other challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic haven't gone away.
That said, take note of what happened in college football, where Auburn paid Gus Malzahn more than $21 million to leave and South Carolina paid Will Muschamp nearly $13 million to make a change. Granted, football is a bigger money-driver to SEC schools than basketball is at most places, but it showed that the money is there. Universities might have lost money during the past year, but many wealthy donors didn't. Some schools might give their head coaches a pass for slight underperformance during a pandemic-impacted season, but I don't expect the cycle to be as quiet as a year ago.
2. NCAA/FBI investigations
We've been discussing how the FBI and NCAA investigations into college basketball corruption might affect the coaching carousel for three-and-a-half years now, and it hasn't really made much of an impact. So it doesn't make a ton of sense to delve here into whether LSU and Will Wade or Kansas and Bill Self or anyone else will be hit with penalties this offseason. It's impossible to predict the timeline of the NCAA's investigations, and since the affected schools have backed their coaches since the initial FBI investigation was made public in September 2017, we'll continue to assume they're not going anywhere. There's one name connected to the scandal that we will discuss, but more on that later.
3. NBA opportunities
Will any college coaches leave for the NBA, or vice versa? The NBA-to-college route hasn't worked out for most schools, but the success of Juwan Howard at Michigan this season could make it an attractive option for athletic directors. On the other side, the last college-to-NBA move was John Beilein going from Michigan to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and that didn't work out. But Brad Stevens has done well with the Boston Celtics -- this season's struggles notwithstanding -- so it's not an idea that's completely off the table. Given that the NBA season isn't ending until the summer, the possibility of a late move is something to keep in mind.
Jobs already open
Boston College: The Eagles got a jump start when they fired Jim Christian in mid-February. Since then, there have been a number of names linked to the job, although Richmond's Chris Mooney, Purdue assistant Micah Shrewsberry, Cleveland State's Dennis Gates and St. Bonaventure's Mark Schmidt have been mentioned consistently. The expectation is the Eagles would take a big swing at someone like John Beilein, Seton Hall's Kevin Willard or maybe Dayton's Anthony Grant before moving on to the next group. People began connecting dots to Loyola Chicago's Porter Moser, whose time with the Ramblers overlapped with that of current BC athletic director Pat Kraft, but my understanding is Moser is not interested in the job at this point.
Penn State: Pat Chambers resigned in October following an investigation into his conduct, and the Nittany Lions appointed Jim Ferry as the interim boss. It sounds like they've recently started to dive into the search, with some emerging names including Gates, Shrewsberry, Michigan assistant coach Saddi Washington and Vermont's John Becker. One interesting name mentioned by sources was Montana's Travis DeCuire, whose time as an assistant coach at Cal overlapped with the Berkeley leadership of Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour. The Nittany Lions also reached out to former Ohio State coach Thad Matta, but that didn't gather much steam. Keep an eye on Shrewsberry here.
Fordham: The Rams moved on from Jeff Neubauer in late January and are set to begin a long list of interviews this week. Part of the delay had to do with athletic director Ed Kull recently being elevated from interim athletic director to the permanent job. There's some talk that Kull's preference is to hire a sitting head coach, but interviews won't be limited to that pool. Some names mentioned with the Rams job include Siena's Carmen Maciariello, Bryant's Jared Grasso, St. Peter's Shaheen Holloway, Vermont's John Becker, Bowling Green's Michael Huger, Colgate's Matt Langel, Louisville assistant Luke Murray, Villanova assistant Kyle Neptune and Kentucky assistant Tony Barbee.
New Mexico: This one opened last week, with the school announcing Paul Weir was out at the end of the season. It's a destination with past success and a passionate fan base, but also one that's going on seven years without an NCAA tournament appearance and questions regarding the salary pool. Frank Martin's name has been linked to the job because of his relationship with athletic director Eddie Nunez, but I don't see it happening. Two more practical names I heard are former Nebraska head coach Tim Miles and Pacific head coach Damon Stoudamire, and another intriguing one emerging is Richard Pitino, should he part ways with Minnesota. Illinois assistant Orlando Antigua is another name.
Others currently open: Albany, Denver, Northern Illinois, Portland, Tennessee-Martin, Texas State, UC Riverside, UTRGV.