Top Candidates to Replace Eric Musselman in Arkansas?
It is highly likely that Eric Musselman is on his way out as head coach of the Razorbacks after taking an interview with the USC Trojans on Wednesday, April 3rd. In this article, some top head coaching candidates to replace Musselman are explored.
Currently, Eric Musselman is the coach of the Arkansas Razorback Men’s Basketball team. However, according to Jack Pilgrim in an article with www.on3.com, Musselman was set to interview for the head coaching job at the University of Southern California today.
While Musselman has been with the Razorbacks since 2021 and appeared in back-to-back elite eight’s the two previous seasons to 2024, he appears to be growing tired and wanting a change. And based on the length of Musselman’s tenures in Fayetteville for five years and the Nevada Wolfpack four before that, do not be surprised if the Hogs are on the hunt for a new head coach very soon.
Here are some Key Names to Watch for as the Next Head Coach for the Arkansas Razorbacks Men's Basketball Team
Chris Beard – Beard is currently the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels and just completed his first season at the school where he led the team to a 20-12 record.
Beard has ties to the state of Arkansas during as he served as the head coach of Arkansas Little Rock for the 2015-2016 season leading them to a 30-5 record and NCAA Tournament appearance.
Beard then went on successful runs with Texas Tech where he coached the Red Raiders to three NCAA tournament appearances in five years, including the NCAA championship game in the 2018-2019 season. Beard then continued his success as the head coach of the Texas Longhorns for a year and a half before legal troubles which were later cleared of any wrongdoing for Beard led to his departure with the school in the 2022-2023 season.
Overall, Beard has six NCAA tournament appearances in eight years. And for a school in Oxford that is not historically known for its basketball, this is a logical fit for Beard to transition over to the Hogs should Musselman depart.
Jerome Tang – Kansas State head basketball coach, Jerome Tang has turned Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kansas into quite a spectacle when the Wildcats take the court for home games.
That may not last too much longer however as due to Tang’s success in Manhattan, he has come up as a popular name in the coaching search to potentially replace Musselman.
In his first two seasons as a head coach at the division one level, Tang has led the Wildcats to a 26-10 record last season and a 19-15 record in year two.
While not as impressive of a resume as Beard, this would be a cheaper route with a lot of promise still in maintaining the Hogs winnings ways on the court.
Will Wade – Wade is currently the head coach of the McNeese State Cowboys and led them to a 30-5 season and an NCAA tournament appearance, which was the schools first since the 2001-2002 season and only the third in program history.
Wade spent time at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, Virginia Commonwealth University and LSU before his current stay with the Cowboys. His combined coaching record is 226-100. During his time at LSU from 2017-2022, he was 105-51 which proves he can win in the SEC.
While Wade was fired from LSU for NCAA level I violation allegations, he is on the bounce back with the Cowboys, and do not be surprised if a school like Arkansas decides to give him a second chance in the SEC as he has proven he can win in the league before.
While other names like Todd Golden from Florida and Shaka Smart from Marquette may be mentioned as well, the three candidates above you may watch for to be more of a consistent conversation is Musselman indeed leaves.