Texas Tech Basketball: 9 candidates to replace Chris Beard as head coach
By Joey Loose
Why Texas Tech basketball could hire Chris Jans
We’ll dive back into the pool of talented mid-major head coaches with our next candidates. It’s another head coach who has experience coaching in Texas and has recently proven that he deserves his chance at a higher-level school. Jans may not have pulled off a postseason upset, but he’s shown that he can win wherever he goes.
A former assistant under Porter Moser and Gregg Marshall, Jans has won big at four different junior colleges. His tenure at Bowling Green ended abruptly after an internal investigation, but he’s bounced back nicely these last four years at New Mexico State, leading the Aggies to three WAC titles. His record is impressive and he has a knack for leading his teams to successful seasons and postseason appearances.
There are a few questions that pop up initially. With how things ended at Bowling Green, would Texas Tech be ready to bring him aboard and risk something happening again? Additionally, he inherited a very good New Mexico State program in a weak conference; can he win in the Big 12, where the competition is way more intense. Still, there’s no doubt that Jans has proven that he’s a great coach and can turn around and win at a program, but in the Big 12?