With the recent announcement from Wren Baker, West Virginia’s Athletic Director, that the university will be conducting a national search for the next head coach of the WVU men’s basketball team, there have been several names that have come up, many of which are looking to make a name for themselves in this year’s March Madness.
Dusty May
May is someone who has been linked to West Virginia since last summer when former head coach Bob Huggins resigned following his DUI arrest. May, the head coach for Florida Atlantic, has already made a name for himself after taking the Owls to the Final 4 last year and is considered to be one of the most sought after coaches in the country. This year, he led the Owls to a 25-8 record, finishing second in the American conference. After being upset in the semifinals of the conference tournament, the Owls found themselves as an 8 seed in this year’s tournament. They will play Northwestern on Friday with tip-off set for 12:15.
Darian Devries
Devries is a name that has started to gain more traction recently. Devries, the head coach at Drake, led the Bulldogs to a 28-6 record as well as a Missouri Valley Conference championship. Devries and the Bulldogs would hear their name called as a 10 seed, where they will take on Washington State. That game is set for Thursday with tip-off set for 10:05.
Mark Byington
Byington is the name that West Virginia fans have heard the most when it comes to the head coaching vacancy. Byington, head coach at James Madison, led the Dukes to their best season in program history with a 28-3 regular season record, topping the previous record of 23 wins. The Dukes would go on to win the Sun Belt Conference tournament, finishing the season 31-3. As for the NCAA tournament, the Dukes find themselves as the 12 seed going against Wisconsin. That game is set for Friday with tip-off scheduled for 9:40.
Pat Kelsey
Kelsey is the head coach for the College of Charleston Cougars. Kelsey, who has been there since 2021, has made the NCAA tournament in back to back seasons, most notably going 31-4 last season before losing in the first round by six points to eventual national runner up, San Diego State. This year, the Cougars come into the tournament as conference champions, posting a 27-7 record. They find themselves as a 13 seed, going against Alabama. That game is set for Friday with tip-off set for 7:35.
Niko Medved
Medved, head coach of the Colorado State Rams, is another name that Mountaineer fans have also been hearing for a while now. Before making the move to Colorado State in 2018, Medved was the head coach at Drake where he was replaced by Darian Devries. This year, Medved led the Rams to a 24-10 record with a runner-up finish in the Mountain West conference tournament. Medved and the Rams will have to do a little extra work to make it into the field of 64 though, as they were put into one of the play-in games as a 10 seed. They will face Virginia on Tuesday with a chance to make it into the tournament. That game is set to tip off at 9:10.
Chris Jans
Jans, the head coach at Mississippi State, is the only power five coach to have his name linked to the vacancy. Jans made the jump to power five back in 2022 after leaving New Mexico State for the Bulldogs. Jans was at New Mexico State for five years, where he made three NCAA tournaments and was slated for a fourth in 2020 with a perfect 16-0 conference record, but no tournament was held due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Jans led the Bulldogs to a 21-13 record in his first year, qualifying for a play-in game but failed to win and make it into the field of 64. This season, Jans led the Bulldogs to a 21-13 record once again, including an SEC tournament semifinal appearance. There will be no play-in game for Jans and the Bulldogs this year as they were given an 8 seed and will take on Michigan State on Thursday with tip-off set for 12:15.
