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The power-conference carousel is winding down -- at least the first phase of it. There were a slew of hires following the first weekend of the men's NCAA tournament, starting with Michigan beating out Louisville and Vanderbilt for Florida Atlantic's Dusty May.

That began toppling a slew of dominoes that included West Virginia hiring Drake's Darian DeVries, Stanford landing Washington State's Kyle Smith, Washington opting for Utah State's Danny Sprinkle, and Vanderbilt hiring James Madison's Mark Byington. None of these hires was much of a surprise, with DeVries, Smith and Sprinkle all considered favorites for most of the last couple of weeks and Byington emerging as the leader for Vandy shortly after the Dukes' upset win over Wisconsin in the NCAA tournament.

After a whirlwind search that included failed pursuits of Scott Drew, May and several others linked in the past few days, Louisville was next to find its coach when it reached a deal with Charleston's Pat Kelsey.

And as we first reported Tuesday morning and advanced Wednesday, SMU has made USC's Andy Enfield the primary focus of its coaching search.

After all these moves, what is the state of the carousel now?

Currently, 52 jobs have opened -- 31 of which have been filled. As a point of reference, there were 61 job changes total last year, 60 in 2022 and 57 in 2021.

For as long as the carousel spins, until all the top jobs are filled, we'll keep you updated here with the latest intel, rumors, scuttlebutt and everything in between for the men's college basketball coaching cycle. Keep track of the full list of official changes here.

Last updated: March 28, 2024

The comprehensive 2024 coaching hot seat guide | All the confirmed coaching changes for 2024-25

March 28

Assuming the Mustangs finalize a deal for Enfield in the next few days, that leaves two high-major jobs on the market: Oklahoma State and USC. We've gone through the names at Oklahoma State a couple of times, so let's focus on USC.

How good is the USC Trojans job?

The Trojans will officially leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten this summer, which solidifies their near-term future and should provide them with plenty of resources.

They've recruited incredibly well in recent years, including landing five-stars Evan Mobley, Onyeka Okongwu and Isaiah Mobley in the 2019 and 2020 classes, and then bringing in No. 1 recruit Isaiah Collier and Bronny James in the 2023 class. They've become a destination for prospects around the country, despite playing second fiddle to UCLA in southern California.

On the downside, there's very little history at the highest levels of the sport. USC hasn't been to a Final Four since 1954 and has reached the Sweet 16 only three times since 1961. Enfield had moderate success, including an Elite Eight in 2021, but the fanbase was beginning to put heat on him over the past three years after two first-round exits and a 15-18 campaign this season.

Potential candidates

Eric Musselman, Arkansas Razorbacks: A southern California guy who grew up in and played at San Diego, Musselman has been the name most heavily linked since the Enfield-to-SMU rumors heated up. Went to three straight Sweet 16s -- including two Elite Eights -- before a down season in 2023-24. Jamie Dixon, TCU Horned Frogs: Dixon is from Los Angeles and was involved with the UCLA vacancy before the Bruins hired Mick Cronin. He's guided the Horned Frogs to three straight NCAA tournament appearances. Buzz Williams, Texas A&M Aggies: There have been whispers floating around that Williams could be interested in the job. Not quite a geographic fit, but Williams has led the Aggies to back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances. Mark Pope, BYU Cougars: Has had plenty of success out West, winning 20-plus games at Utah Valley on two occasions before moving to BYU and leading the Cougars to two NCAA tournament appearances. Brian Dutcher, San Diego State Aztecs: He just signed an extension with the Aztecs and has shown no sign of wanting to leave, but it could be worth a call. Went to the national championship last season and is currently coaching in the Sweet 16. Niko Medved, Colorado State Rams: Has been the head coach since 2018 (and was an assistant from 2007-13), building the Rams into one of the most consistent programs in the Mountain West. They've gone to two NCAA tournaments in the last three seasons. Amir Abdur-Rahim, South Florida Bulls: Had an incredible first season at South Florida, leading the Bulls to 25 wins and the AAC regular-season championship. Went to the NCAA tournament with Kennesaw State last season. Was briefly linked to the Cal job last year. Jason Hart: A Los Angeles native who was an assistant under Enfield for eight seasons before leaving in 2021 to become the head coach of the G League Ignite program. He had proved himself as a high-level recruiter in college and developed his reputation during his time with Ignite.

Other notes:

Washington State is already in the process of interviewing candidates after Kyle Smith left earlier this week, sources told ESPN. Among those in the mix are Eastern Washington's David Riley, Seattle U's Chris Victor, South Dakota State's Eric Henderson, and Jim Shaw, who was the associate head coach under Smith. Toledo's Tod Kowalczyk and Youngstown State's Jerrod Calhoun are considered two of the favorites at Utah State, sources told ESPN. Syracuse associate head coach Gerry McNamara is the leader to replace Carmen Maciariello at Siena. The deal isn't done yet, but all signs point to him right now. Three names emerging at Loyola Maryland: Maryland assistant Greg Manning, Princeton assistant Brett MacConnell and Cincinnati assistant Josh Loeffler. Northwest Missouri State's Ben McCollum is expected to be involved in the Drake search. Following Keith Dambrot's retirement at Duquesne, assistant coach Dru Joyce III is widely expected to be promoted to the top spot. James Madison and Charleston will be highly coveted vacancies; both are rumored to be looking almost exclusively at sitting head coaches.

March 24

Bombshell news came down Saturday night: Florida Atlantic's Dusty May has agreed to be the next head coach at Michigan, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

May was the top choice at multiple vacancies this cycle, but he maintained that he wanted to wait until the end of his season before fully deciding on his next spot.

West Virginia wanted May early in the process, but moved down its board when it realized he was likely going elsewhere. Louisville made him its top target after Scott Drew opted to stay at Baylor, while Michigan zeroed in on May as its top candidate almost immediately after firing Juwan Howard. The school that was a surprisingly serious candidate was Vanderbilt. May spoke to the Commodores, sources told ESPN, and they were a legitimate option entering the day, until May ultimately decided to replace Howard in Ann Arbor.

It's a big win for athletic director Warde Manuel and the Wolverines. They've landed a coach who led Florida Atlantic to the Final Four last season and returned to the NCAA tournament this season -- although the Owls lost in overtime to Northwestern in the first round Friday.

What does May's hire mean for the rest of the cycle? His decision is the first huge domino to fall, and now the biggest question is: Where will Louisville go next?

After missing on Scott Drew and May, it's unclear what Louisville athletic director Josh Heird has planned. The Cardinals put a lot of eggs in the May basket and had some level of confidence over the past couple of days. There have been few other names floating around for this job, but one that continues to buzz is Charleston's Pat Kelsey -- who would have the energy and personality to reignite the Louisville fan base.

Heird could also look to hire the hot mid-major name from this tournament, which is currently James Madison's Mark Byington.

Or will he go for a bigger name, a high-major coach with a more established résumé?

Seton Hall's Shaheen Holloway could be an interesting option, and TCU's Jamie Dixon, Northwestern's Chris Collins and Arkansas' Eric Musselman fit the mold, too. South Florida's Amir Abdur-Rahim is another name.

Meanwhile, what about Vanderbilt? The Commodores have had a variety of names in the mix over the last few weeks. Amir Abdur-Rahim is in the mix, while other names linked to the job include Pat Kelsey, Mark Byington, Drake's Darian DeVries and former Louisville coach Chris Mack.

The combination of teams losing in the NCAA tournament and May taking Michigan off the board should also start to get the ball rolling on the other available jobs.

Darian DeVries was a potential pivot at Michigan had the Wolverines looked elsewhere, but West Virginia and Oklahoma State also remain interested in him. He's squarely in the crosshairs at West Virginia, and the Mountaineers are nearing the end of their search. Mark Byington and Colorado State's Niko Medved also remain in the mix for the vacancy in Morgantown.

Darian DeVries and Niko Medved are thought to be two of the names in contention at Oklahoma State, along with Amir Abdur-Rahim, Western Kentucky's Steve Lutz and a couple of others.

Stanford is wrapping up its search, with Washington State's Kyle Smith the heavy favorite. The Cougars lost their second-round game Saturday, so an announcement could, theoretically, come soon.

And Utah State's Danny Sprinkle was the leader at Washington before athletic director Troy Dannen left for Nebraska; he still seems to be in a good spot.

March 21

4 p.m. ET

The first in-tournament firing

In a bit of a stunner midway through the first day of the NCAA tournament, SMU informed coach Rob Lanier he was out after just two seasons at the helm. The Mustangs struggled in his first season but improved by 10 wins in his second season, winning 20 games before losing Wednesday in the NIT.

In the school's official announcement for the coaching change, athletic director Rick Hart cited the school's investment in basketball, its NIL opportunities and its move to the ACC as reasons why it should be competing with the best. Reading between the lines -- and based on a few conversations with industry sources this afternoon -- it sounds like SMU is going to pursue some big-name coaches in an attempt to win immediately in the ACC.

Three names have been buzzing for the job in the short time since it opened: Arkansas' Eric Musselman, McNeese Coboys's Will Wade and Western Kentucky's Steve Lutz.

Musselman just finished his worst season since arriving in Fayetteville, going 16-17 and ending a streak of three straight Sweet 16 appearances. Wade just orchestrated one of the biggest single-season turnarounds in college basketball history, taking McNeese from 11-23 to 30-3 and the NCAA tournament in his first season.

Lutz isn't as big a name as the other two, but he has high-major experience from his time as an assistant under Matt Painter and Greg McDermott and is in the NCAA tournament for the third straight season after leading Texas A&M-Corpus Christi to the Dance in 2022 and 2023. He also has deep ties in the state of Texas and was an assistant under Matt Doherty at SMU from 2006-10.

8:30 a.m. ET

State of the coaching tracker

The past few days have felt like the calm before the storm. Not just for the NCAA tournament, but for the coaching carousel as well. Multiple industry sources have commented in recent days about how quiet things have been when it comes to coaching movement, especially at the high-major level.

But this happens every season. Last year, things slowed down while we waited for Ed Cooley, Micah Shrewsberry and Rick Pitino to lose. Two years ago, things started moving only when Matt McMahon, Todd Golden, Dennis Gates, Lamont Paris and Jerome Tang were bounced from the tournament.

Who has their grips on the coaching carousel this year? Florida Atlantic's Dusty May is the main one, but Drake's Darian DeVries and Washington State's Kyle Smith are also candidates at a majority of the high-major vacancies.

As we tip off the best four days on the sports calendar, here is the state of play on the coaching tracker.

Louisville Cardinals

As mentioned last weekend, luring Scott Drew out of Baylor was always going to be a difficult task. Now that he is confirmed to be staying in Waco, is it time for Louisville to wait and see what Florida Atlantic's Dusty May wants to do? There's a good chance he is the top choice or in the top two for at least three schools this cycle, but word is he wants to wait until his season is over before deciding. Who's after him on Josh Heird's list? Charleston's Pat Kelsey has generated some buzz.

Michigan Wolverines

This vacancy seems linked to the Louisville vacancy, through Dusty May. If May prefers Ann Arbor, is he the top choice? If he goes to Louisville, who's next for AD Warde Manuel? Drake's Darian DeVries is confirmed to be on the Wolverines' list, while there was buzz this week surrounding South Florida's Amir Abdur-Rahim. Expect more names to filter through if May picks Louisville.

West Virginia Mountaineers

Assuming Dusty May goes to another school, where does athletic director Wren Baker turn? Darian DeVries has been one of the names buzzing pretty consistently, although others include Washington State's Kyle Smith, James Madison's Mark Byington, Colorado State's Niko Medved and Grand Canyon's Bryce Drew.

Washington Huskies

In the days leading up to Mike Hopkins' firing, the name at the forefront to replace him was Utah State's Danny Sprinkle. He was still the favorite to get the job entering the week. But does athletic director Troy Dannen leaving for Nebraska change anything about the search? It's unlikely, given how far along the Huskies were in the process. Besides Sprinkle, the one name that keeps popping up is Boise State's Leon Rice.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

OSU doesn't seem to have dialed in on any particular candidate since moving on from Mike Boynton last week. News is the program is focused on up-and-coming coaches as opposed to power conference coaches who want a fresh start -- but that could change depending on who becomes available. Some names linked to the job include Western Kentucky's Steve Lutz, Niko Medved, Darian DeVries and Northwest Missouri State's Ben McCollum, as well as Kyle Smith and Danny Sprinkle -- the latter two seem more likely to land elsewhere.

Stanford Cardinal

Even before Jerod Haase was fired last week, the leader in the clubhouse to be his replacement was Kyle Smith, and that's the same situation today. Princeton's Mitch Henderson is another candidate, but it feels like Smith's to lose at this point.

Vanderbilt Commodores

Most of the names floating for this job are the same as when it opened: Former Xavier and Louisville coach Chris Mack, Kyle Smith, Darian DeVries, Pat Kelsey and Mitch Henderson. Mack was perceived as the early favorite, but it's unclear whether there's a leader at this point. There has been buzz over the past 24 hours that Dusty May is interested in the job, but given the other jobs available, it feels unlikely.

Other notes San Diego State assistant coach Chris Acker has been the name buzzing for Long Beach State since it opened. LBSU athletic director Bobby Smitheran arrived from San Diego State last summer. Missouri State has had Northwest Missouri State's Ben McCollum in its sights for a couple of weeks, but nothing is done yet. McCollum is also involved in a couple of other searches. A number of candidates have been mentioned for the vacancy at Rice, including Longwood's Griff Aldrich and former Georgia Tech and Memphis coach Josh Pastner. Other names linked include Yale's James Jones, Penn State assistant Brent Scott and Florida assistant Carlin Hartman. We reported Sunday that Saint Louis was in talks to make Indiana State's Josh Schertz its next coach. UIC still has a few names on its list, but Eastern Kentucky's AW Hamilton is emerging as a legitimate candidate there.

March 17

In the midst of the wild bubble swings on Saturday night, the coaching carousel offered up a twist of its own: Ohio State promoted interim head coach Jake Diebler to the long-term role.

When the Buckeyes fired Chris Holtmann in mid-February, the top target was immediately perceived to be Florida Atlantic's Dusty May. There were talks with other candidates, namely South Carolina's Lamont Paris, but May was the front runner -- especially after Paris signed a lucrative extension to stay in Columbia. But as Diebler led Ohio State on a 6-2 run to get onto the bubble, whispers started to emerge that if it wasn't May, the Buckeyes could opt to keep Diebler.

Despite Florida Atlantic losing to Temple in the AAC semifinals and potentially putting its own NCAA tournament hopes at risk, Dusty May is still the most-sought-after candidate on the market.

Twenty-four hours ago, it looked like he might be able to decide between three jobs. Ohio State is off the table, but what's next?

Louisville is still expected to make a run at Scott Drew, although prying Drew out of Waco is looking increasingly difficult, sources told ESPN. If the Cardinals can't convince Drew, May is perceived to be next on the list.

Michigan's search is just getting underway, and May is expected to be a top candidate there as well.

Which is the better job right now? We reached out to a handful of coaches, agents and industry sources to gauge perception.

We asked six industry sources to rank Louisville, Michigan and Ohio State from a job perspective. Here's how they landed: Louisville received four first-place votes and Ohio State received two. Michigan had zero.

Michigan's league affiliation and the questions surrounding the future of the ACC gave the Wolverines the edge over Louisville -- behind Ohio State -- for one coach.

"Long term, you want to be at a powerful football school in the Big Ten or SEC for sustainability and resources," he said. "They have the most resources now and in the future with more realistic expectations."

Another coach disagreed, saying it wasn't really close between Louisville and Michigan in his mind.

"Because of NIL, fan base and facilities, I think Louisville is clear," he said. "They're also in a far easier league."

Two industry sources mentioned Michigan's issues with getting transfers into school puts it behind Louisville right now. Under Juwan Howard, the Wolverines landed transfer commitments from Terrence Shannon Jr. and Caleb Love in consecutive offseasons. But both players ultimately went elsewhere after having issues gaining admission. Now, they're both playing at All-American levels for Illinois and Arizona, respectively.

"If Michigan had no academic standards, it would be [ahead]," one said. "It's a tough look right now with how Caleb Love is playing at Arizona."

"Michigan would be ahead for me if not for the admissions issues," added another.

March 15

After a whirlwind Thursday, the coaching carousel looked like it could slow down from a power-conference perspective. And then Michigan announced a stunner: head coach Juwan Howard will not return to Ann Arbor next season.

It was only one month ago that athletic director Warde Manuel gave Howard a vote of confidence and said he had "not really thought about any changes in our men's basketball program." The Wolverines haven't won a game since Manuel's comments, though, and they just finished last in the Big Ten for the first time since 1966-67.

The Michigan vacancy immediately vaults near the top of the available destinations in the 2024 cycle.

How good is the Michigan Wolverines job?

Michigan can offer tradition, resources and one of the biggest athletic brands in college sports. The Wolverines won a national championship in 1989, went to title games under John Beilein in 2013 and 2018 and reached the Sweet 16 in five of six NCAA tournaments between 2017 and 2022.

The athletic department as a whole ranked fourth in total revenue during the 2022-23 academic year, and the school is locked into one of the two big conferences moving forward.

Michigan will forever be known as a football school. In some ways, that's a positive. Coaches will face less pressure than they would at a basketball-focused school. That said, in a world increasingly dictated by NIL, being the second priority for boosters could be seen as a negative by some coaches.

In the past couple of years, Michigan has also had trouble getting some of its primary portal targets through the door. Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr., and Arizona guard Caleb Love, two of the best players in the country, both committed to Michigan as transfers in the offseason, but ended up elsewhere after issues with admissions.

Potential candidates

WORTH A CALL

Nate Oats, Alabama Crimson Tide: Oats coached high school basketball in the state of Michigan for 11 years before moving to the college ranks. He'll likely say no, but Manuel has to make the call. Dusty May, Florida Atlantic Owls: Arguably the top target at Ohio State and West Virginia, and perhaps the top realistic candidate at Louisville if Scott Drew says no, but Michigan should be able to throw its hat in the ring.  Randy Bennett, Saint Mary's Gaels: Bennett hasn't shown any interest in leaving Moraga, but Michigan is on a different level. He's led the Gaels to nine NCAA tournament appearances and won the WCC this season.

OTHER POSSIBLE TARGETS

Jamie Dixon, TCU Horned Frogs: Dixon is leading TCU to its third straight NCAA tournament appearance, and he went to 11 tournaments during 13 seasons at Pittsburgh. Could he be looking for a new opportunity? Sean Miller, Xavier Musketeers: Miller has plenty of experience in the Midwest from his two stints at Xavier, and also led Arizona to three Elite Eights during his time in Tucson. Had a down year this season but his résumé is enough to be considered. Kyle Smith, Washington State Cougars: He's done one of the best coaching jobs in the country this season. Smith has the Cougars going to the tournament for the first time since 2008 and has won at least 20 games at three different schools. Darian DeVries, Drake Bulldogs: Entering Champ Week, only two teams had won at least 25 games in each of the past four seasons: Houston and Drake, which DeVries has led to two straight NCAA tournaments -- and three in the past four seasons. Porter Moser, Oklahoma Sooners: Moser publicly denied any involvement with the DePaul vacancy, but it's hard to imagine he would turn down overtures from Michigan if the Wolverines showed interest. Led Loyola Chicago to a Final Four in 2018 and a Sweet 16 in 2021, and will likely have Oklahoma headed to the NCAA tournament this season. Chris Mack: Hasn't coached since leaving Louisville two years ago, but his résumé is better than plenty of other potential candidates. Won three regular-season titles at Xavier and made four Sweet 16 appearances, leading the Musketeers to a 1-seed in the NCAA tournament in 2018. Jerome Tang, Kansas State Wildcats: Tang was one of the hottest coaches in the country last season after turning around the Wildcats and leading them to the Elite Eight after being picked last in the Big 12 in the preseason. Kansas State won't go dancing this season, but Tang still has plenty of supporters. Danny Sprinkle, Utah State Aggies: No player who returned to Utah State this season had previously scored a point for the Aggies, but Sprinkle led them to the outright Mountain West regular-season title in Year 1. Also went to two NCAA tournaments at Montana State before leaving. Mitch Henderson, Princeton Tigers: Henderson has won at least a share of three straight Ivy League regular-season titles and led the Tigers to the Sweet 16 last season as a 15-seed. He spent more than a decade in the Big Ten as an assistant at Northwestern. Niko Medved, Colorado State Rams: Medved is a Minnesota native who spent a season in the Big Ten as an assistant for the Golden Gophers in 2006-07. Brought the Rams to the NCAA tournament in 2022 and will have them dancing again. Amir Abdur-Rahim, South Florida Bulls: He also did an incredible job this season, leading South Florida to the outright AAC regular-season title in his first seasons after guiding Kennesaw State to its first Division I NCAA tournament. Josh Schertz, Indiana State Sycamores: One of the hottest coaches in the country, Schertz coached the Sycamores to the regular-season title in the Missouri Valley. Was also a highly successful coach at the Division II level.

After Oklahoma State and Vanderbilt made coaching moves early Thursday, Stanford followed suit late that night. Less than 10 minutes after the Cardinal's season ended -- before the postgame news conference even began -- the school released a statement saying it was firing Jerod Haase after eight seasons. How good is the Stanford job?

There are mixed feelings on where Stanford falls in the pecking order of available power-conference jobs.

Let's start with the positives. It has a global brand as one of the best academic institutions in the world, which gets it in the door with academically focused recruits from all over the country as well as Europe. The Cardinal have actually recruited at a fairly high level under Haase, landing multiple five-star and top-50 recruits and seeing players selected in three straight NBA drafts from 2019-21. They have a history of going to the NCAA tournament: Mike Montgomery quietly took them to 11 straight in the late 1990s and early 2000s; Trent Johnson did the same in three of four seasons. So, it's possible to have some level of consistent success in Palo Alto.

On the other hand, Stanford is moving to the ACC. Suddenly, it's a fish-out-of-water geographically, with brutal travel, in a more difficult conference. While the academics make it an attractive destination for a certain subset of recruits, the Cardinal's recruiting pool is also smaller than those of most of its peers. And, while there has been success in the past two or three decades, they've been to only one NCAA tournament in the past 16 years.

Potential candidates

There will be some overlap between the lists at Vanderbilt and Stanford, including near the top.

Washington State's Kyle Smith and Princeton's Mitch Henderson have long been rumored to be among the top targets at Stanford. Smith has the Cougars headed to their first NCAA tournament since 2008, with two wins over Arizona on their résumé. He's also familiar with high-academic institutions from his time at Columbia, where he won 20-plus games twice before going to San Francisco and winning 20-plus games in each of his three seasons.

Henderson, meanwhile, has guided the Tigers to at least a share of three straight Ivy League regular-season titles and had them in the Sweet 16 last season as a 15-seed -- a run that included an upset of 2-seed Arizona.

Colgate's Matt Langel, who is headed to his fourth straight NCAA tournament, and Yale's James Jones, who has won six Ivy League regular-season titles, could also garner consideration.

March 14

Two more big jobs opened on Thursday, with Oklahoma State firing Mike Boynton after seven seasons and Vanderbilt moving on from Jerry Stackhouse after five years. Most of the buzz in the industry over the past few weeks has been that both jobs could go either way, but Oklahoma State losing six games in a row to end the season and Vanderbilt winning just four since the turn of the year sealed Boynton's and Stackhouse's fates.

How good is the Oklahoma State job?

From a historical perspective, Oklahoma State has some of the best tradition in the Big 12. The Cowboys won a pair of national championships in the 1940s and have been to six Final Fours. They also have plenty of resources, good facilities and a storied home court in Gallagher-Iba Arena.

On the downside, they haven't made it past the first weekend of the NCAA tournament since 2005 -- four head coaches ago. The Big 12 is only getting more difficult, too, with the addition of Arizona next season.

Possible candidates

This one could go a number of different ways. Could athletic director Chad Weiberg start his search by trying to woo a power conference head coach looking for a new home? Looking in the region, the Cowboys could start with a pursuit of Texas A&M's Buzz Williams, who led the Aggies to the NCAA tournament last season and has them on the bubble this season. He could be worth a call.

Testing the waters with TCU's Jamie Dixon and the Mississippi State Bulldogs's Chris Jans is also possible.

Two of the hotter names on this year's carousel -- Utah State's Danny Sprinkle and Washington State's Kyle Smith -- should also receive interest.

Could this also be a potential landing spot for Will Wade? The McNeese coach has led one of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball history this season, taking the Cowboys from 11 wins in 2022-23 to 30 and a bid to the NCAA tournament in his first year with the program. He obviously has a track record of success at LSU and VCU, and has shown he can quickly turn around a program.

After that, expect the best mid-major names in the country to be options: Drake's Darian DeVries, Indiana State's Josh Schertz, Colorado State's Niko Medved, Grand Canyon's Bryce Drew and James Madison's Mark Byington, among others.

How good is the Vanderbilt job?

Vanderbilt is one of the hardest jobs in the SEC, and it's only going to get tougher with Texas and Oklahoma joining the conference next season. There are positives, however.

First, the city of Nashville. Vandy also has a national reputation as an academic institution, which gives it an identity and a brand for certain recruits -- but it also makes it harder to build exclusively via the transfer portal. The Commodores also can't cast as wide a net on the recruiting trail. They've been to just two NCAA tournaments since 2012 and haven't been to the Sweet 16 since 2007.

Potential candidates

Despite the perceived difficulty of the job, expect plenty of high-level candidates to have interest.

Kyle Smith is likely to be near the top of the list after leading Washington State to its first NCAA tournament appearance since Tony Bennett took the program there in 2008. He also won 20 games at both Columbia and San Francisco before moving to Pullman.

Former Louisville and Xavier coach Chris Mack will likely be linked. Mack left Louisville in 2022 and has been waiting for the right opportunity to return. He went to eight NCAA tournaments at Xavier, reaching four Sweet 16s and an Elite Eight.

Princeton's Mitch Henderson will also be linked. Henderson has guided Princeton to at least a share of three consecutive regular-season titles in the Ivy League and also brought the Tigers to the Sweet 16 as a 15-seed last year.

This could be another potential landing spot for Josh Schertz or Mark Byington, while Colgate's Matt Langel, Charleston's Pat Kelsey, Samford's Bucky McMillan and South Florida's Amir Abdur-Rahim could also be options.

March 13

For the second time in just over two years, Louisville is conducting a search for a new head men's basketball coach. The school announced Wednesday it had fired Kenny Payne, after the Cardinals' season ended with a loss to NC State in the ACC tournament. Payne went just 12-52 in his two seasons at the helm, winning one game away from home.

After Chris Mack stepped down in January of the 2021-22 season, then-interim athletic director Josh Heird opted to go the former player route, hiring Payne and hoping his recruiting success and big man development would bring some excitement back to Louisville.

Now the permanent athletic director, Heird has to conduct another search to fill the position -- and this time, he can't get it wrong.

So what's next? Who should Heird call?

Job description

From a historical perspective, Louisville is a top-10 all-time program in men's college basketball. The Cardinals have won three national championships (most recently in 2013 -- which was later vacated by the NCAA). They've been to 10 Final Fours and still rank in the top 10 all time in NCAA tournament wins, even with the vacated victories.

There's a history of winning at Louisville under multiple coaches. It has top-tier facilities, plenty of resources and an engaged fan base that has become apathetic over the past couple of years. The next coach will be required to bring the fans back to the KFC Yum! Center. The cloud of uncertainty from the multiple NCAA investigations into the program is also gone, leaving the next coach with a fresh slate moving forward.

As far as drawbacks, the region isn't really an ACC hotbed for recruiting, and Kentucky is still king in the state. And this job is going to be a complete rebuild. Louisville's last NCAA tournament appearance was in 2019, and it has been arguably the worst high-major team in the country the past two seasons.

Candidates

DREAM NAMES

Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls: It wouldn't be a coaching carousel without Donovan being linked to a college job. He hasn't shown much interest in returning to college since leaving Florida for the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2015, though, and the Bulls are currently in position to make the NBA's play-in tournament.  Scott Drew, Baylor Bears: Drew has shown no signs of leaving -- or slowing down in -- Waco. He was the architect of arguably the greatest rebuilding job in modern college basketball history, so turning Louisville around would pale in comparison.

POTENTIAL NAMES

Dusty May, Florida Atlantic Owls: Might be the favorite for the Ohio State job, too. Took FAU to the Final Four last season and will have the Owls in the NCAA tournament again this season. May is very comfortable in Boca Raton and signed a 10-year contract extension after last season. Makes around $1.25 million per year. Mick Cronin, UCLA Bruins: Likely the top choice for some segments of the Louisville fan base, Cronin makes sense from a geographic perspective. He's a Cincinnati guy who had a ton of success with the Bearcats and also spent two seasons as an assistant at Louisville under Rick Pitino. Since moving out to Los Angeles, he's led UCLA to three Sweet 16s and a Final Four -- although the Bruins struggled this season and finished the regular season 15-16. Here's the issue: Cronin has a huge buyout worth upwards of $20 million (drops to $16 million on April 1), plus the associated taxes. Unless there's a way to bring that number down, he's not a viable option. Nate Oats, Alabama Crimson Tide and T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State Cyclones: Two more coaches that fall into the same big buyout bucket as Cronin. Oats' drops from $12 million to $10 million in a few days; regardless, he's not going anywhere. Otzelberger has more than $17 million remaining on his contract. You can cross these guys off your list. Jamie Dixon, TCU Horned Frogs: Dixon has been linked to the job in recent weeks. Likely headed to his third consecutive NCAA tournament at TCU, winning one game in each of the last two tourneys. Was highly successful at Pitt before going to the Horned Frogs. Lamont Paris, South Carolina Gamecocks: Has done one of the most impressive coaching jobs in the country this season, taking a South Carolina team picked last in the SEC to a top-25 ranking and the NCAA tournament. Also went dancing at Chattanooga. Could sign a new deal at South Carolina. Josh Schertz, Indiana State Sycamores: One of the hottest coaches all season who led Indiana State to a regular-season title in the Missouri Valley -- the Sycamores lost in the tournament title game and face a long wait to find out their Selection Sunday fate -- running some of the best offense in the sport. Schertz was also highly successful at the Division II level. Pat Kelsey, Charleston Cougars: Has gone to four NCAA tournaments with Charleston and Winthrop. Kelsey's won 58 games the past two seasons and four conference tournaments in five years. Would bring much-needed energy to the post.  Eric Musselman, Arkansas Razorbacks: Though the Razorbacks have struggled this season, Musselman has led them to two Elite Eights and three Sweet 16s in three years. Very comfortable with the transfer portal and quick rebuilds. Makes around $4.2 million per year. Mark Pope, BYU Cougars: Would Pope go to the biggest rival of his alma mater? The former Kentucky star has had success as a head coach at Utah Valley and BYU and has the Cougars nationally ranked and heading to the NCAA tournament in their first season in the Big 12. Sean Miller, Xavier Musketeers: Did one of the best coaching jobs in the country last year, guiding the Musketeers to 27 wins and a Sweet 16 in his first season back at the helm. They're 15-16 this season, however. Miller also went to five Sweet 16s and three Elite Eights during his time at Arizona.  Jerome Tang, Kansas State Wildcats: One of the hottest names entering the season after leading Kansas State to an Elite Eight last year, but things have not gone as well in Year 2. The Wildcats are 18-13 and likely to miss the NCAA tournament. Tang's buyout would be $6 million. Kyle Smith, Washington State Cougars: Smith, one of the hottest names on the carousel, has already been linked with Washington and will likely be a candidate at Stanford or Vanderbilt if either opens. Is set to lead WSU to its first NCAA tournament appearance since Tony Bennett. It's Smith's first tourney appearance, too. Chris Collins, Northwestern Wildcats: Another coach mentioned by a source or two in connection with the opening. Collins will have the Wildcats in the dance for the second straight season. Has experience in the ACC from his days as a Duke assistant. Niko Medved, Colorado State Rams: After winning 25 games in 2021-22, Medved has Colorado State back in the NCAA tournament this season, with wins over Creighton, San Diego State and Utah State. Has consistently produced highly efficient offenses. Darian Devries, Drake Bulldogs: Has Drake going to its second straight NCAA tournament, and third in four years. The Bulldogs have won 106 games over that span. Would also likely bring his son, Tucker DeVries, who won Missouri Valley Player of the Year the past two seasons. Prediction

Louisville takes a real swing at Scott Drew but will ultimately be unable to tempt him to leave Waco. It will also see if there's any way to mitigate Mick Cronin's buyout, and will then turn to Dusty May. If May takes the Ohio State job instead, it's entirely unclear where Louisville will land. The Cardinals could wait and see which candidate emerges as the hot March name with an NCAA tournament run.

March 12

As we mentioned Monday in this space, DePaul's pursuit of Oklahoma coach Porter Moser was not as advanced as social media reports had indicated -- and on Monday night, Moser seemingly put an end to all the speculation.

"Heard all the rumors this afternoon and want to say emphatically THERE IS ZERO TRUTH!! I LOVE Oklahoma and Sooner Nation," he wrote on X. "These accounts make stuff up and there is no validity to any of these 'sources' b/c I have spoken to NO ONE about any job!!"

So where does that leave DePaul? We listed Arizona State's Bobby Hurley, James Madison's Mark Byington and UAB's Andy Kennedy as potential candidates, and all three have been involved in the process. Former Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann had conversations with DePaul, sources told ESPN, but the interest level on either side is unclear. There's been speculation that the school is adding names to the list as opposed to narrowing things down, but we'll have to see if other jobs opening forces them to quicken the process.

Meanwhile: A name emerging as a candidate at Western Carolina is Gardner-Webb coach Tim Craft, sources said. The school could also opt to promote from within after Justin Gray left for Coastal Carolina.

March 11 The latest on the big openings

Ohio State Buckeyes: Following the mid-February ousting of Chris Holtmann, incoming athletic director Ross Bjork got right to work on finding a replacement. The school reached out to a number of different candidates, although things have slowed down over the past week. Creighton's Greg McDermott took himself out of the mix by agreeing to a contract extension in Omaha. Florida Atlantic's Dusty May remains heavily in the mix. South Carolina's Lamont Paris is also involved -- although he's also in the early stages of extension talks with the Gamecocks, sources told ESPN. There's interest in Xavier's Sean Miller, Washington State's Kyle Smith and others.

One interesting wrinkle: Interim head coach Jake Diebler has gone 5-1 since replacing Holtmann. If the Buckeyes win the Big Ten tournament, does he have a legitimate chance to keep the job?

Washington Huskies: Mike Hopkins was informed last week that the school is moving on from him after the Pac-12 tournament, which was expected for most of the season. The name that had been buzzing behind the scenes for weeks was Utah State's Danny Sprinkle, who led the Aggies to the Mountain West title in his first season at the helm. While Sprinkle enters the search as the favorite, the deal isn't done yet. Athletic director Troy Dannen has legitimate interest in other candidates, including Kyle Smith.

West Virginia Mountaineers: This job has essentially been open since last summer, when Bob Huggins stepped down and athletic director Wren Baker promoted Josh Eilert to the interim role for the season. It's been a slow process so far though, with Baker having minimal direct contact with candidates to this point, sources told ESPN. Dusty May has long been perceived as the top target, although that's likely to be the case at a few spots this spring. Other names that have been linked to the vacancy include James Madison's Mark Byington, Drake's Darian DeVries, Colorado State's Niko Medved, Indiana State's Josh Schertz, Charleston's Pat Kelsey and Appalachian State's Dustin Kerns. There has also been some speculation regarding Mississippi State's Chris Jans.

DePaul Blue Demons: The Blue Demons fired Tony Stubblefield in late January, but they're still going through the process to find a replacement. The most intriguing speculation centers around Oklahoma's Porter Moser, a native of the Chicago suburbs who spent a decade at Loyola Chicago. Talks aren't as advanced as social media would lead you to believe, but there's interest and DePaul has expressed it would be willing to pay Moser's buyout, which is around $6.5 million, sources told ESPN. Others who have been linked to the job in recent weeks include Arizona State's Bobby Hurley, Mark Byington and UAB's Andy Kennedy.

What's next?

Louisville and Stanford are considered the most likely jobs to open this week. Louisville nearly made a move on Kenny Payne earlier this season but his disastrous two-year stint is likely to come to an end on Tuesday against NC State in the ACC tournament. Meanwhile, Jerod Haase is wrapping up his eighth season in Palo Alto without an NCAA tournament appearance. He's expected to meet with athletic director Bernard Muir early this week, sources told ESPN.

Speculation is growing around Vanderbilt and Jerry Stackhouse potentially parting ways, despite Stackhouse's sizable buyout, while other big jobs to keep an eye on this week include Oklahoma State, Arizona State and NC State.

Despite Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel saying in February he had "not really thought about any changes," it's still worth monitoring Juwan Howard's status in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines lost eight in a row to end the regular season, finishing 8-23 overall and 3-17 in the Big Ten.

Saint Louis owes Travis Ford a significant amount of money, but the Billikens could make a move on him and pursue Indiana State's Josh Schertz. In the Mountain West, Justin Hutson's contract at Fresno State runs out after this season.

As far as retirements are concerned, the primary one to watch is Florida State's Leonard Hamilton. After a promising middle of the campaign, the Seminoles lost nine of their final 15 games and will miss the NCAA tournament for the third straight season. Hamilton, 75, has been in Tallahassee since 2002.

Rounding up the latest chatter Division II Northwest Missouri State's Ben McCollum is expected to be the top target at Missouri State. McCollum has won four D-II national championships in the past seven seasons. Pepperdine fired Lorenzo Romar before the WCC tournament -- and one name buzzing as a replacement is Ohio State interim head coach Jake Diebler. Eastern Washington's David Riley has been another name linked. Hampton opened Monday morning, with the program firing Buck Joyner after 15 seasons. Georgetown assistant Ivan Thomas is considered the favorite for the job. After being linked with the Coastal Carolina vacancy, Miami assistant Kotie Kimble is considered one of the front-runners at William & Mary. Kimble was an assistant for the Tribe for eight years. One coach to watch at Western Carolina: Furman assistant Tim Johnson. A few names in the mix at Central Arkansas: Wichita State assistant TJ Cleveland, Arkansas-Pine Bluff head coach Solomon Bozeman and Creighton assistant Jalen Courtney-Williams.
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