Some things to kick off the week…
Obviously a tough situation at UTRGV as they look to hire a new head coach after the passing of Lew Hill. The three names that I’ve heard so far are Texas associate head coach K.T. Turner, Oklahoma assistant Pooh Williamson, and Texas Tech assistant Ulric Maligi.
Early names at Hofstra include Villanova assistant Kyle Neptune, current acting head coach Mike Farrelly, former Penn State, Duquesne, and LIU head coach Jim Ferry (a Long Island native). It will also be interesting to see if (when) Bryant’s Jared Grasso doesn’t get Fordham if he gets involved here.
An interesting name that I heard a few times this weekend at George Mason is Duke associate head coach Nate James. He has strong DMV connections – he’s a DC native who was a McDonald’s All-American at St. John’s Prospect Hall (MD). Sounds like Tennessee assistant Kim English and Winthrop head coach Pat Kelsey are still in play here as well.
Word on the street is that new Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger will retain current assistant Daniyal Robinson. The pair served on Greg McDermott’s staff at ISU together back in the late 2010’s. It also sounds like UNLV assistant Tim Buckley will make the move with Otz. More on these moves as I hear them.
It sounds like the leader at NAIA Oklahoma City State is Randall University (OK) head coach Mark Berokoff. The veteran coach captured the 2016 + 2019 NCCAA D2 National Coach of the Year awards and led the Saints to three NCCAA National Championships. Berokoff also spent time in administrative roles at Texas State and Louisiana Tech.
I can confirm that Kankakee CC (IL) Alex Thorson will step away at the conclusion of the season. I have heard that he has accepted a job in the private sector, but sounds like he will stay involved in basketball by writing for Prep Hoops Illinois. Thorson has been the head coach at KCC for the past three seasons, and was a GA at Olivet Nazarene before that.
