Maryland Basketball: 7 candidates to replace Mark Turgeon as head coach
By Joey Loose
In a bit of an unexpected move, Mark Turgeon announced that he was leaving his position as head coach at Maryland Basketball, a decision that comes at an unusual time but seemed to be mutual. A point guard at Kansas more than three decades ago, Turgeon played under Larry Brown and was part of the coaching staff that won the national championship in 1988. He cut his teeth as an assistant with the Jayhawks, at Oregon, and briefly with the Philadelphia 76ers before finding success as head coach at Jacksonville State, Wichita State, and Texas A&M.
Turgeon departed Texas A&M after leading the Aggies to four straight NCAA Tournaments, taking the Maryland job in 2011. Turgeon was set to succeed the great Gary Williams, who led the Terrapins to the first national title back in 2002 and had built one of the ACC’s most solid programs.
Turgeon got off to a slow start with three decent years before the Terrapins transitioned to the Big Ten. Under Turgeon’s leadership, Maryland was an immediate contender upon joining their new conference, finishing top 3 in the Big Ten in each of those first three years. That success included a run to the Sweet Sixteen in 2016.
Even though he did lead the Terrapins to a regular-season title in 2020, Turgeon simply didn’t do enough to elevate this Maryland program across his tenure. There was never a lack of talent in the program, with Alex Len, Diamond Stone, Dez Wells, and many other talented players suiting up during Turgeon’s ten-plus years on the sidelines. However, he led the Terrapins to just five NCAA Tournaments and was unable to sustain a deep run in the NCAA Tournament aside from that 2016 run.
Looking ahead, Danny Manning takes over as interim head coach for the rest of the season, with the administration getting plenty of time to consider the next direction for Maryland basketball. The change comes at an unusual time, but it does give plenty of time for the Terrapins to figure out their next head coach. There have already been a number of names brought up in the search but we’ll have to just wait and see what happens down the stretch.
Maryland is a fantastic coaching position that will attract some great names in the coming months. They have a high ceiling and have been competitive in the Big Ten since joining back in 2014. When you throw in the rich recruiting ground of Washington DC and the surrounding area, it’s no wonder some of the names are being tossed around. We’ll be looking closely at six potential candidates for the job, taking an early look at how these coaches would fit in with the Terrapins.