10 most interesting options to replace Richard Pitino

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via our own Tony Liebert. https://gopherhole.com/10-most-interesting-options-to-replace-richard-pitino/

Who should be on this list or not be on this list?


WCCO’s Henry Lake reported Sunday that Richard Pitino and Mark Coyle had a discussion Friday that may have all been the beginning of the end of his time as the head coach of the Gophers. Assuming that this report is true, let’s look at a speculative list of the most interesting candidates to replace Richard Pitino.

  • Honorable Mention: Rick Pitino
For obvious reasons, I think Richard’s hall-of-fame father Rick would be the funniest option to replace Richard. Rick is currently the head coach of Iona, and it seems to be a matter of time before he makes the jump back up to a high major head coaching job. I would have to imagine Rick would not go to a school that gave his son the boot, but you can still laugh at how funny it would be if this happened.

10. Tim Miles
Miles is most known for his time spent as Nebraska head coach for seven years, where he finished with a 116-114 record. He has spent much of his career in the midwest, acting as the head coach for North Dakota State and (D2) Southwest Minnesota State. He wasn’t insanely productive anywhere he has been, but he seems very well-liked across the country. He is only 54 years old, so he makes for an interesting safety net.


9. Craig Smith

Craig Smith is currently the head coach of Utah State. Now in his third year as head coach of the Aggies, Smith has a 70-22 record competing in the Mountain West Conference. Before residing in Logan, Utah Smith was a head coach at South Dakota and an assistant at Nebraska and Colorado State. He was born in Stephen, Minnesota and he is only 48 years old. Being that he is due for a jump to the high-major program level why not come home?



8. Thad Matta

Thad Matta was the longtime head coach at Ohio State where he recorded a record of 337-123 in 13 seasons. Since the 2016-17 season, he has been out of coaching completely, and there have been rumblings that he wants to get back into the mix. He has familiarity in the Midwest having previously coached Butler and Xavier. He is only 53 years old and would certainly be an interesting option for the Gophers.



7. Darian DeVries

DeVries will be one of the most popular names among D1 coaching searches. In only his third season at Drake, he has the Bulldogs 24-3. He has earned 20+ wins in all three of his seasons as head coach. After being an assistant at Creighton for 16 years, he has taken advantage of his opportunity at Drake. Another midwest guy that is only 45 years old could be a terrific option.



6. Porter Moser

College basketball fans may recognize Moser’s name from his magical run with Loyola-Chicago and Sister Jean to the 2017-18 Final Four. Well, Moser’s Ramblers are back this season reaching as high as No. 21 in the country and a current 21-4 record. He is only 52 years old with stops at Arkansas Little-Rock and Illinois State as a head coach. If he can do it in the Missouri Valley why can’t he do it in the Big Ten?



5. Ryan Saunders

It seems to be a recent trend in college basketball for programs to hire a famous alumnus. Memphis with Penny Hardaway, Michigan with Juwan Howard, and Georgetown with Patrick Ewing to name a few. Some have been more successful than others, but why wouldn’t the Gophers take a shot in the dark. It makes sense any way you put it, and I would imagine a 34-year-old would be much more comfortable coaching college kids instead of grown men.



4. John Beilein

Beilein has been a very popular name within Big Ten basketball for years, having made the Michigan basketball program a consistent powerhouse. He has most recently been let go by the Cleveland Cavaliers promoting a career in the booth for Big Ten Network. He is 68 years old, but I would have to imagine that he would like to get back out there, and why not jump into a familiar conference. There are no connections to Minnesota, but this would certainly be great for the Gophers program.



3. Eric Musselman

Musselman is a popular name in college basketball, as he has completely turned around Arkansas’ program in only his second season. He has the Razorback ranked No. 20 in the country and only rising. He has a connection with Minnesota, as his father Bill was head coach of the Gophers from 1971-75 as well as the first coach in Timberwolves history. This move makes a lot of sense, but unfortunately I just really don’t see it happening, but you can always hope.



  1. Niko Medved
Niko Medved was born in Minneapolis, MN and he is currently the head coach of Colorado State. He brought Breck high school graduate David Roddy to the school who is now averaging 16.1 PPG and 9.3 RPG in only his second year. Medved has the Rams 15-4 and likely headed for the NCAA tournament. He is only 47 years old and supports a 47-36 record in only three seasons at CSU. He also has eight years of head coaching experience previously at Furman and Drake. Medved was even an assistant at Minnesota for the 2006-07 season.



  1. Brian Dutcher
There is one option that stands out over the rest. Brian Dutcher, San Diego State’s current head coach attended the University of Minnesota himself. His name may sound familiar because his father Jim was the head coach of the Gophers for 10 seasons from 1975-1986. Brian has an 87-30 record in only four seasons as the head coach of the Aztecs. He is currently 61 years old and has great connections to the Gophers.

After receiving a contract extension at San Diego St with a nearly $7MM buyout, he insisted on only a $1MM buyout if he goes to Gophers. “It’s my school where I went & was able to be part of basketball program with my dad,” said Dutcher.
 
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The description of Eric Musselman is funny. Yes his dad was the coach of the Twolves. But Bill Musselman was THE coach that made Minnesota Gopher basketball popular here. I would love to see Eric Musselman first and foremost. He has gotten the job done quickly at both Nevada and Arkansas. Dutcher is also a great option.
 






9. Craig Smith

Craig Smith is currently the head coach of Utah State. Now in his third year as head coach of the Aggies, Smith has a 70-22 record competing in the Mountain West Conference. Before residing in Logan, Utah Smith was a head coach at South Dakota and an assistant at Nebraska and Colorado State. He has no connections with Minnesota, but he is only 48 years old and he is due for a jump to the high-major program level.


Uhh, he was literally born in the state.

 

Dutcher, Brian Dutcher! Although leaving San Diego for Minneapolis will probably take a lot of money.
 

9. Craig Smith

Craig Smith is currently the head coach of Utah State. Now in his third year as head coach of the Aggies, Smith has a 70-22 record competing in the Mountain West Conference. Before residing in Logan, Utah Smith was a head coach at South Dakota and an assistant at Nebraska and Colorado State. He has no connections with Minnesota, but he is only 48 years old and he is due for a jump to the high-major program level.


Uhh, he was literally born in the state.

Plus it's virtually certain he had multiple MN kids on all his USD teams.
 




Bunch of white guys, I have to think the search will be a bit more diverse.
 







If you had to put your money down, would you pick the next Gophers coach to be on this list of ten or would you take the field?
 

If you had to put your money down, would you pick the next Gophers coach to be on this list of ten or would you take the field?
I would pick the list. I think Dutcher is the likely choice given Musselman is in a P5 job with the current buyout.
 

WCCO does not have it on their site, KARE does not either, nothing on ESPN. His representation has not confirmed.

Never said he was fired yet that he was informed he wouldn't be returning but would coach out the season.
 


I'll put money on Muss or Dutcher. If it's true that Muss wants a good offer to come here, solid.

Either hire would elevate the program
 





Agree. Anthony Grant is far more accomplished than several on these lists who happens to have different pigmentation.

Last go round people were camped out in front of various establishments and theme parks looking for Shaka Smart. It's not about pigment, it's about buzz.

Look at the list of folks, they are either people who haven't flopped at Power 5 or they have MN connections. I like Anthony Grant and Dennis Gates, but the lack of their names has nothing to do with pigment. It's simply MN provincialism (we just stopped hearing about Tony Dungy as a HC and Tyrone Carter as a college football coach).
 

If you had to put your money down, would you pick the next Gophers coach to be on this list of ten or would you take the field?
No. I'll be surprised if it's not someone on this list.
 








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