Texas Basketball: 5 potential candidates for Longhorns to replace Shaka Smart
Chris Beard
- HC experience: McMurry (2012-13; 19-10), Angelo State (2013-15; 47-15), Little Rock (2015-16; 30-5), Texas Tech (2016-present; 112-55)
- Assistant experience: Texas (1991-95), Incarnate Word (1995-96), Abilene Christian (1996-97), North Texas (1997-99), Texas Tech (2001-11)
There may not be a more obvious choice for the Longhorns than Texas Tech’s Chris Beard, who has – as reported by others – long considered his alma mater to be his dream job.
Beard is no stranger to Austin, having served as a manager under Tom Penders at Texas before graduating in 1995. Constant stops around the state as an assistant led the 48-year old to successful head coaching gigs at McMurry and Angelo State, before a dominant 30-5 year at Little Rock – which saw Beard’s Trojans upset Purdue in double overtime – catapulted Beard to the head position at Texas Tech.
The rest is history for Beard, who took over the Red Raiders after Tubby Smith bolted for Memphis. Texas Tech failed to reach the NCAA Tournament in Beard’s first year, and then ripped off an Elite Eight run the following season, before year three yielded the Red Raiders’ magical run to the national championship game.
Since then, Texas Tech has floated around the middle of the Big 12, finishing with 18 overall wins and nine conference wins in 2019-20 and 2020-21. With buzz surrounding the possibility of numerous Red Raiders leaving the program after the team’s loss to Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament, this would be a perfect opportunity for Beard to jump ship and go for his dream job – especially considering his buyout to go to another Big 12 school drops substantially at the start of April.
Chris Beard's buyout to go to another Big 12 school drops to $4 million on April 1, sources told ESPN. $2 million for any school outside the Big 12.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) March 26, 2021
Just, you know, in case anyone is randomly wondering this morning.
It is no secret that Beard has a distinct style of play, particularly on the defensive end, where the Red Raiders have ranked in the top 25 the last four seasons, including the top 10 from 2017 to 2020. His slow, methodical style of play has produced results – and it could be the identity that Texas basketball needs in order to be revitalized.
To state the obvious: this would be the home-run hire for Texas. Poaching Beard after his buyout drops would be the best for the Longhorns, particularly in the longterm. He is, quite obviously, tied to the Big 12 and the Longhorn State – and, considering this is his dream job, he might ultimately be a lifer if Texas can land him.