Georgia Tech Basketball: 8 candidates to replace Josh Pastner as head coach

Richie Riley

There’s one final name to consider today, though it’s a name that many might not be super excited to see on this list. Sometimes it’s hard to see another mid-major coach who hasn’t had significant experience at the power conference level. However, this is a coach who’s been in the ACC and has done decent work as a head coach, even if it’s not with the country’s most prestigious programs or toughest leagues.

Riley has bounced around in his coaching career, starting off as a player at Eastern Kentucky and serving as an assistant at seven schools, most notably during two-year stints at UAB under Jerod Haase and Clemson  under Brad Brownell. Riley’s head coaching career began with a stellar two-year run at Nicholls State before he was hired by South Alabama in 2018. While he’s still searching for that first trip to the NCAA Tournament, Riley has turned things around for the Jaguars and is only a few days removed from a loss in the Sun Belt championship game, getting ever so close once again.

Riley is a young head coach on the rise, much like a number of names on this list, but is he too raw to take on a job like Georgia Tech? It would not be a surprise at all for him to be a power conference someday, and it wouldn’t be shocking to see the Yellow Jackets reach out, but his level of experience might be concerning, even with those two years as an assistant in the ACC. Don’t be mistaken, one day Riley is going to lead a team to the NCAA Tournament.

We are finished with today’s deep dive into eight early candidates for the Georgia Tech job; who do you think would be the best fit as the Yellow Jackets’ next head coach?