Providence Basketball: 10 candidates to replace Ed Cooley as head coach

Jeff Battle

The Friars are likely looking for someone with head coaching experience but this is the only name on the list who has never been a collegiate head coach. It might not make sense to include someone like this initially, but Battle has been at Providence for years and knows the program and those around it. The Friars may want other experience, but would this really be a terrible hire?

Battle has been a collegiate assistant for over three decades. After time at multiple schools in Delaware, he spent over a decade under the late Skip Prosser, including long stints at Xavier and Wake Forest. After more than a decade with the Demon Deacons, he joined Cooley’s staff at Providence in 2015 and has been associate head coach the last two seasons for the Friars.

Clearly, Battle played a significant role in the recent success of this program both on and off the court and would be the name to consider if they want to maintain this current momentum. However, it’s unlikely that the Friars would be willing to hand their program over to someone like this, even if it might keep some of their players from transferring this offseason. One of the sport’s great assistant coaches, it’ll be interesting to see what happens next for Battle regardless of the direction Providence chooses in their coaching search.