Multiple college hoops and Longhorns reporters/insiders have indicated in the past couple of days that the Texas basketball program and athletic director Chris Del Conte are "expected" to move on from head coach Rodney Terry this offseason.
Horns247's Chip Brown was one of the first to report, along with Jeff Goodman of Goodman Hoops regarding the news that CDC and the Longhorns will likely move on from Terry after three seasons.
Terry was Texas's full-time head coach for the past two seasons after former Longhorns' head coach Chris Beard was let go amid the 2022-23 season. He was a longtime assistant coach at Texas, including serving as an assistant coach for roughly a decade under former Longhorns' head coach Rick Barnes (from 2002-2011).
He also served as an assistant coach and associate head coach under Beard from 2021-2023.
"I've been at Texas 13 years, and there's not a year I haven't made the NCAA Tournament or been part of the NCAA Tournament. I have a lot of pride in terms of being a Longhorn. I love being at Texas. I don't think anyone has been a part of Texas basketball that's been more successful than myself. I've been a part of the top-five seasons in this program's history."Rodney Terry
Terry led the Longhorns to an Elite Eight appearance in the 2023 NCAA Tournament a couple of postseasons ago. He also led Texas to back-to-back field of 68 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including a Round of 64 win last year in the Big Dance over the Colorado State Rams, before falling short of two-seed Tennessee in the Round of 32.
CDC has made it clear over the past few months that all Texas athletic programs should be on the trajectory and in contention for championships year-after-year.
Texas was a top 20 ranked team in the major preseason polls, but the Longhorns blew a double-digit lead in the second half against the Xavier Musketeers in the first four earlier this week.
This job opening for the Longhorns is expected to be one of the most appealing in college hoops early this offseason for Texas.
Sean Miller, Xavier head coach
Brown had reported over the past couple of weeks that had Texas decided to move on from Terry after the 2023 postseason in the NCAA Tournament, Xavier head coach Sean Miller would've been the likely hire to be the Longhorns' next full-time head coach.
Miller, at 56 years old, has a decorated coaching resume that includes over a dozen NCAA Tournament appearances, four regular season conference championships, and four conference tournament crowns. He's closing in on the 500-win mark between his time coaching at Xavier and for over a decade with the Arizona Wildcats (2009-2021).
Miller won the Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors twice at Arizona (in 2014 and 2017) and was the Pac-10 Coach of the Year once (2011).
The longtime Xavier and former Arizona bench boss Miller is a name to watch early in the coaching candidates search to be Texas's next full-time head coaching hire this offseason.
Brad Underwood, Illinois head coach
The 61-year-old Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood had consistent success reaching the postseason over the past decade or so in multiple stops at D1 schools, including the Oklahoma State Cowboys and Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks in the early-to-mid 2010s.
Underwood reached the Elite Eight last postseason and won the Big Ten Tournament with Illinois last year in 2024. The Fighting Illini have won at least one NCAA Tournament game in three of the past four postseasons under Underwood's coaching direction since 2021.
Underwood has coaching connections in and around the area in the state of Texas, beginning his coaching career as a head coach at Stephen F. Austin in 2013. He also played and coached in the Big 12 at Oklahoma State in 2017-18 and his alma mater is the Kansas State Wildcats a couple of states north of the Lone Star State.
TJ Otzelberger, Iowa State head coach
Fourth-year Iowa State Cyclones head coach TJ Otzelberger has been a hot name in coaching candidate searches for many big-time coach job openings in the past few years. Otzelberger was among the big-time head coaches in the running for the blue-blood job opening with the Indiana Hoosiers early this offseason.
Texas is an attractive job opening that could potentially appeal to Otzelberger in the SEC. He's been able to win in the postseason consistently with Iowa State in the Big 12 over the past few years and in past stops with the South Dakota State Jackrabbits and UNLV for a couple of seasons a half-decade ago.
Otzelberger and the Cyclones have made it to the Sweet 16 in two of the last three NCAA Tournaments since 2022. We should know soon if Otzelberger and CDC share any common ground in hypothetical possible discussions to be the next Texas head coach this offseason.
Scott Drew, Baylor head coach
Before Texas hired Beard to be the next head coach during the 2021 offseason for the Longhorns, one of the names thrown around in connection with the UT job candidacy was longtime Baylor Bears head coach Scott Drew. The 20+ year tenured Baylor head coach has found consistent and sustained success in Waco over the past decade and a half.
Baylor and Drew won a National Championship in the 2021 NCAA Tournament a few years ago. In the three years since the national title in 2021, Drew and the Bears have made the NCAA Tournament all three postseasons.
Drew is an obvious candidate in-state with another big hoops program in Texas that is worth CDC at least kicking the tires on to gauge interest in coming to the Longhorns this offseason.