Texas Tech Basketball: 9 candidates to replace Chris Beard as head coach
By Joey Loose
Why Texas Tech basketball could hire Ulric Maligi
We’re looking at an extensive list of candidates, so we’re also going to include one name without head coaching experience. Sure, the Red Raiders would no doubt like someone with experience running the program, but the ability to promote one of their own assistants could outweigh that desire. With the experience Maligi has gained in recent years, he’s a fantastic candidate for this and other jobs.
After graduating from Howard in 2006, Maligi has spent his coaching career bouncing around the state of Texas on D1 staffs. He’s put in work at UT Arlington, Stephen F. Austin, Houston, SMU (under Larry Brown) and Texas A&M (under Billy Kennedy). He joined the Red Raiders staff two seasons ago, though he wasn’t part of that run to the national championship game.
The lack of head coaching experience certainly hurts his chances, but Maligi is a rising name in the coaching ranks. Clearly, he’s got a lot of experience working and recruiting Texas and he could help maintain the current momentum of the program. However, it’s also possible that he follows Beard to the Longhorns on his new staff or wouldn’t be a serious candidate due to a lack of head coaching experience.