Story: Adam Nelson (@HD_DirtKing)
So much stuff going on – here are a few quick things…
Columbia – Everyone wants to talk about NYU head coach David Klatsky here (assuming he’ll be firmly in the mix here and at Penn). But one name I keep hearing here is LIU assistant Derrick Phelps. The NY native played at CTK in Queens before starring at North Carolina. He was an assistant under Kyle Smith at Columbia from 2014-16 (won the CIT in 2016). He has also worked Washington State, San Francisco, Marist, and Monmouth.
Campbell – Speaking of former Kyle Smith assistants…current Florida assistant John Andrzejek is getting a lot of play here. Andrzejek, a Columbia alum (*could be a sneaky name there too), has been at Florida for the past two seasons. He has also worked at Washington State, San Francisco, and Dartmouth. Another name making the rounds at Campbell is former South Carolina standout BJ McKie. Currently an assistant at Wake Forest, McKie has also worked at ETSU and Charleston Southern. Could be a current lower level head coach in play here as well.
Radford – interviews are already underway. Sounds like they have already talked with Virginia Tech assistant coach J.D. Byers. A few connections here – Byers was an assistant at Radford from 2011-14 and VT head coach Mike Young is cousins with Radford AD Robert Lineburg. Sounds like current assistant Shane Nichols is also in the mix as is a current D1 head coach. Some believe this one could be done as early as Friday.
NC State – Obviously the hottest names out there are McNeese State head coach Will Wade and Tennessee Associate head coach Justin Gainey (an NC State alum). But the most outside the box name that I’ve heard multiple times now is Bob Huggins. Not sure that the 71-yr old is the best fit there, but don’t be surprised when you hear his name pop up.
Keep an eye on the America East. Heard that one of the “old you can stay, but you have to fire your staff” things is going down. Stay tuned…
The search is on at D3 Messiah. Names that I’ve heard here include Bryn Athyn assistant Mark Seidenburg (a former Messiah assistant / former head coach at Wilson) and Wilkes assistant Willie Hope (a Messiah alum). I’ve also heard from multiple people that the leader here could be a current NJCAA D1 head coach who played at Messiah. More on this search as I hear it.
Sounds like the leader at NJCAA D1 Florida Southwestern is a current NJCAA D1 head coach in the Jayhawk. His team is still alive – more on this when I can.
I have heard that a D1 JUCO in the MACCC / Region 23 has opened. Working to confirm…
Set the O/U earlier this week. Also set the O/U for the week at 9.5 (we’re already at 4 – leaning over).
You can check out the 2025 Coaching Changes Tracker presented by D1.relocation HERE. It contains all of the head coaching changes so far at the NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO levels.
