Florida Basketball: 8 candidates to replace Mike White as head coach
By Joey Loose
Matt McMahon
Every offseason there seems to be one or two mid-major coaches that are the hot names at every major coaching job opening and McMahon certainly fits the bill again this year; and likely will continue to do so until he leaves Murray State. For the Gators, he might actually be a fantastic fit in their quest to get back to SEC supremacy.
McMahon played at Appalachian State and spent much of his early career on staff with the Mountaineers, leaving briefly to be on staff at Tennessee. He took over Murray State’s head coaching job in 2015 and the results have been exceptional, leading the Racers to three NCAA Tournaments, including an upset win over Marquette three seasons ago with then-unheralded recruit Ja Morant putting on a show.
If McMahon can find Morant and build the talent to keep winning OVC titles, imagine what he can do with Florida’s much more extensive resources from a recruiting standpoint. Geographically his hire makes sense, as he’s spent most of his career in the SEC’s footprint. The only concern is how he’d handle the transition from OVC to SEC, but considering White never recruited someone as talented as Ja Morant, I think McMahon could handle the step up.