By Aidan Joly
On Wednesday, the coaching carousel really got going with Ohio State firing Chris Holtmann amidst his seventh season in Columbus.
The move in and of itself is not too surprising, but it came as something as a surprise that it came midseason and not at season’s end. Ohio State is now the second high major program without a head coach, joining DePaul.
Holtmann is by no means a bad coach. In his first five seasons at Ohio State he led the Buckeyes to at least 20 wins and made the NCAA tournament four times (the Buckeyes would have gone in 2020 as well) and won a tournament game in three of those seasons.
However, the wheels have fallen off the past two seasons. Last season, Ohio State started the season 10-3, but finished 16-19. This year it was a similar story, starting 12-2 and now he is fired with the Buckeyes at 14-11. He leaves OSU with a final tally of 137-85 and 67-64 in Big Ten play.
Jake Diebler will serve as the interim coach for the last six regular season games and the Big Ten tournament.
To evaluate the job, there is a ton of resources and a ton of NIL money, some of the best in the country. It is likely a top-20 job in the country. It is not only the first big hire for incoming athletic director Ross Bjork, but it is one of his first moves, period. It’s unknown what he will look for, but it’s a fair assessment to say that this job can attract a sitting high major coach.
That being said, all of my seven candidates are sitting head coaches, six of them at the high major level. Here’s a list of candidates.
Greg McDermott, Creighton
McDermott has been a candidate at Ohio State in the past. He signed a contract extension in 2022 but there has been some murmurs within college basketball about what his future will look like. Georgetown coach Ed Cooley made an interesting comment after Creighton beat Georgetown on Tuesday night, encouraging Bluejays fans to appreciate McDermott. What does he know?
Creighton is likely to enter a rebuild after this season, could that give McDermott a chance to get a change of scenery? He is in his 14th season at Creighton and has won over 300 games.
Mick Cronin, UCLA
Another guy who might be looking for a change of scenery. Cronin was fantastic a couple hours south in Cincinnati, winning 296 games in 13 years.
His UCLA tenure started out pretty good but this year’s team has fallen off a cliff and currently sits at 13-11, leading to some speculation that Cronin will be looking for a parachute after this season. He has also made it clear that he is unhappy with the NIL support the program gets. Ohio State could be a solid fit for him, if he wants out.
Sean Miller, Xavier
Miller’s exit at Arizona in 2021 led to him being out of the sport for a season, but is in his second season at Xavier and is still considered to be one of the best coaches in the country. He has won over 70% of games throughout his career.
The Big East is a tough league and he’s managed to keep Xavier competitive this season. He’s had success everywhere he’s been and has an exciting brand of basketball that could translate very well in Columbus.
Dusty May, Florida Atlantic
A guy who came up through the Big Ten as a manager at Indiana in the 1990s, May figures to be one of the most sought-after names should he choose to leave FAU this spring. He led the Owls to the Final Four last year and signed a 10-year contract extension, but if Ohio State wants him they should be able to pay the buyout.
Although, he went to Indiana and the Hoosiers job could very well be open soon, so he may want that job and Indiana might make sure he lands in Bloomington.
Lamont Paris, South Carolina
After turning Chattanooga into a winner, Paris landed the South Carolina job in 2022. After a rough debut season that saw the Gamecocks go 11-21, he has South Carolina in contention to win the SEC this season, currently sitting at 21-4.
Paris has become a proven winner and has shown an ability to both recruit freshmen well as well as use the transfer portal to his advantage. He is familiar with the state as a former assistant at Akron (2005-2010) as well as the Big Ten as a former Wisconsin assistant (2010-2017) before landing the top gig at Chattanooga.
Nate Oats, Alabama
Oats was a hot name for his work at Buffalo before landing the Alabama job. He’s done more of the same in Tuscaloosa, winning nearly 70% of his games and has Alabama in contention to win the SEC in what would be its third SEC title in five years.
Oats plays a modern brand of high-paced basketball that values threes, a style that would surely excite in the Big Ten.
One drawback: he signed a big contract extension one year ago that lasts through the 2028-29 season. He is one of the highest paid coaches in the sport and his buyout is believed to be well north of $10 million, according to CBS Sports, which could be an issue.
Buzz Williams, Texas A&M
Bjork came to Ohio State from Texas A&M, where he was the athletic director there. It makes a lot of sense as to why Ohio State would in turn take a look at Williams.
Williams has had success at Texas A&M and made the NCAA tournament three times in five years at Virginia Tech, including a run to the Sweet 16 in 2019. He’s also won SEC coach of the year twice at Texas A&M (2020, 2023).
Prediction: Ohio State should start the coaching search with a big offer to either McDermott or May and hope one of them takes it. Easy in, easy out.
AJ Hoops 