NCAA Basketball: 10 candidates to replace Chris Beard as Texas HC

Grant McCasland

Not every potential hire is a big splash, but sometimes that splash isn’t the right move. McCasland is one of the up-and-coming coaches in the game, and he’s worked much of his career in the state of Texas. The jump to Texas might not exactly be in the cards for him or these Longhorns, but it’s certainly worth a closer look.

He’s one of the hot names on the mid-major circuit for what he’s done recently at North Texas. A former Baylor player and assistant, he has plenty of familiarity with the state and the Big 12. Since taking over the Mean Green in 2017, he’s averaging 20 wins a season, has a CBI title, and upset 4-seed Purdue in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. His Mean Green has also brought home two C-USA titles and continues to position his program well.

McCasland is long overdue for a shot at a power conference school, but is Texas prepared to go all in with another mid-major coach? Their six-year run under Shaka Smart wasn’t ideal, and it’s easily arguable that he had a higher pedigree at the time than McCasland has now. McCasland is going to be a hot name mentioned for a number of jobs this offseason and might be a sneaky good hire for some school, but it’s likely that Texas is going to shoot much bigger than him.