Penn State still has a week left to go in their season, but the search is already underway. Biggest question here is whether or not Penn State will pony up and pay a competitive Big Ten salary.
Here are the very early opening odds on a large group. These will be updated (and names added) as the search progresses.
Penn State Men's Basketball Coaching Search Odds
| Odds | Name | Current Job | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15/1 | John Becker | Head Coach - University of Vermont | 229-95 (.707) in 10 seasons at UVM. America East Coach of the Year (2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020) |
| 18/1 | Mark Schmidt | Head Coach - St. Bonaventure | 241-183 (.568) in 14 seasons at St. Bonaventure. 2016 A-10 COY. Also spent six seasons as the head coach at Robert Morris. |
| 20/1 | Dennis Gates | Head Coach - Cleveland State | Has turned Cleveland State around in just two years - won back-to-back Horizon League COY awards. |
| 20/1 | John Thompson III | Former Head Coach - Georgetown + Princeton | 346-193 (.642) in 17 seasons as a D1 head coach. 2013 Big East COY. |
| 22/1 | Keith Dambrot | Head Coach - Duquesne | 63-46 (.578) in 4 seasons at Duquesne + 305-139 (.687) in 13 seasons at Akron. Was Lebron James coach in HS. |
| 25/1 | James Jones | Head Coach - Yale University | 333-280 (.543) in 21 seasons at Yale. 5x Ivy League regular season championships - 3X COY. |
| 26/1 | Steve Donahue | Head Coach - Penn | Pennsylvania native who is 287-228 (.557) in 19 seasons as a D1 HC (Penn, BC, Cornell). |
| 28/1 | Phil Martelli | Associate Head Coach - Michgan | Spent 24 years as the head coach at St. Joe's - 444-328 (.575). AP national COY in 2004. 4X A10 COY. |
| 30/1 | Mike Rhoades | Head Coach - VCU | Son of former Pennsylvania State Senator James Rhoades. 78-41 (.655) in 4 seasons at VCU. 322-169 (.656) overall with stops at Rice + D3 Randolph-Macon |
| 30/1 | Ryan Odom | Head Coach - UMBC | 2017-18 AE Champs. Led UMBC to first-ever #16 vs #1 NCAA tournament upset vs Virginia. 2020-21 AE COY. |
| 32/1 | Chris Mooney | Head Coach - Richmond | Philly native who is in 287-228 (.557) 16-seasons at Richmond. The Princeton grad also spent one season as the HC at Air Force. |
| 38/1 | Andy Toole | Head Coach - Robert Morris | Odds should be better, but struggled this season (4-15). 192-169 (.532) in 11-seasons at RMU. |
| 42/1 | Jim Ferry | Interim Head Coach - Penn State | Led PSU to an 8-13 (5-12) record this season. Former head coach at LIU (2002-12) + Duquesne (2012-17) |
| 100/1 | Joe Crispin | Head Coach - Rowan University | Penn State's third leading all-time scorer with 1,986 points. Played in the NBA after graduation. 67-42 (.615) in 4 seasons at D3 Rowan. |
Odds on the search at Boston College can be found HERE.
