This week's carousel breakdown focuses on identifying the next coaches to rise through the ranks, UMKC's hire, results of consequence and a full carousel tiermaker.
Who is the next Ben McCollum, Bucky McMillan or Josh Schertz?
Several coaches have risen through the DII, DIII or JUCO ranks and transformed into high major superstars. Some previous examples include Bruce Pearl (Southern Indiana), Brad Underwood (Daytona State), Grant McCasland (Midland College) and many more. With the recent success of Ben McCollum (Northwest Missouri State), Bucky McMillan (Mountain Brook HS) and Josh Schertz (Lincoln Memorial), many athletic directors conducting searches this spring should look to the lower divisions to find their next coach.
Who could be the next great rising star?
Brett Ballard, Washburn University (Division II)
Brett Ballard is the name that comes up most when looking for the next Division II star. Ballard took over at Washburn in 2017 and has amassed a 189-79 (.705) record. Last season he took the Ichabods to the NCAA DII Final Four before losing to eventual national champion Nova Southeastern. This year they've started 22-0 and are currently the top ranked team in Division II.
Ballard has had several opportunities to leave over the years, but he continues to stick it out while Washburn upgrades around him. His patience is similar to that of McCollum and Schertz, who coached at their Division II stops for 15 and 13 seasons, respectively. At 45 years old, Ballard is still very much in his prime and could be a great long term option for a premium mid-major or lower tier high major school this cycle.
Matt Majkrzak, Northern Michigan (Division II)
Matt Majkrzak is 127-69 over seven seasons at Northern Michigan. He's won three straight GLIAC championships and has the Wildcats 19-3 to start this season. In the most recent Division II NABC Poll, Northern Michigan was ranked 10th, the school's highest ranking since 1993. Majkrzak's sustained success the last four seasons should catch the eye of several mid-major athletic directors in the Midwest.
Andrew May, Snow College (JUCO)
Andrew May took over at Snow College in 2022 and has done nothing but win. In four seasons, he's 95-22 (.812) and led the Badgers to their first No. 1 ranking in school history last year. May is a BYU alum who has spent nearly his entire adult life coaching around Utah. Before his head coaching debut at Snow, he was an assistant at Utah Tech for three seasons and the Director of Basketball Operations at BYU prior to that. He would make a great candidate at any of the Utah mid-major schools, where basketball is normally well resourced and historically successful.
Jordan Fee, former Gannon head coach (Division II)
Jordan Fee spent one season as the head coach of DII Gannon University and he made the most of it. The Golden Knights went 32-3 in his lone campaign, winning their conference championship and making the DII Elite Eight. In the season prior to his arrival, Gannon was 3-23 - making it one of the best turnarounds of the season at any level in college basketball. Fee left to become the associate head coach at Florida Atlantic under John Jakus and was recently named to the Silver Waves Most Impact Assistant Coaches list. Fee will surely be in the mix for any of the mid-major job openings in the southeast this spring.
The white whale of DII coaches is Nova Southeastern's Jim Crutchfield, but there's currently no indication he's willing to make the jump. He's got another national title contender and is closer to retirement than taking another job.
UMKC hires Mark Turgeon.
Out of no where, right? Not entirely. Turgeon has spent the last few years consulting and trying to find his way back onto the sidelines. He's a Kansas native and Kansas City AD Brandon Martin wanted to make a splashy hire to help put the Roos back on the map. In addition to a significant NIL and resource investment, Turgeon's son, Will, is also joining the staff from Eastern Washington.
Turgeon last coached four years ago and at nearly 61 years old, still has several years left in the tank. He's a lofty 479-275 in 23 seasons as a head coach, with stops at Jacksonville State, Wichita State and Texas A&M before his most recent gig at Maryland. 2026-2027 will be Turgeon's first real season in the NIL era, so he'll need a portal savvy staff to help with the transition. The Roos will look to make their first NCAA Tournament in school history under the veteran head coach.
There were several results of consequence this weekend.
Texas 79 - Oklahoma 69
The Porter Moser era is on the ropes in Norman. The Sooners are on an eight-game losing streak after winning their SEC opener against Ole Miss. Oklahoma led most of the way, but gave up a 12-2 run late in the second half to lose to their Red River rival. The Sooners' student section let out a "Fire Moser" chant as the clock wound down, making for an awkward scene at Lloyd Noble Center. New OU Athletic Director Roger Denny takes the job on February 15 and we wouldn't be surprised to see a decision made on Moser's future shortly after that.
NC State 96 - Wake Forest 78
The Demon Deacons have lost four straight and sit at 11-11 on the season. Steve Forbes has yet to make the NCAA Tournament in six tries at Wake Forest and they'll need an ACC Tournament run to get a bid this year. While the general public thinks this should be it for the Forbes tenure, sources in Winston Salem say there's a very real chance he returns for a seventh season. Wake Forest is in the bottom tier when it comes to roster spending in the ACC and Athletic Director John Currie is looking for ways to give his coaches a fair shake. As long as the bottom doesn't completely fall out, Forbes is trending towards safe this cycle.
LSU 92 - South Carolina 87 (OT)
This game featured two coaches with similar tenures who desperately needed a win. Lamont Paris is in year four with only one winning season to his name. The Gamecocks fell to 11-11 (2-7, SEC) and have lost six of their last seven. Paris will need a strong finish to fend off any hot seat chatter, but a $12M buyout could ultimately keep him around for a fifth season.
Matt McMahon is also 2-7 in SEC play, but with a much more palatable 14-8 record overall. While the record looks good on the surface, the Tigers only have one win over teams projected in the NCAA Tournament field. New LSU AD Verge Ausberry recently said the Tigers would need to make the tournament or they'd "have to reevalute". If LSU were to part ways with McMahon, they'd owe him just under $8M.
Villanova 87 - Providence 73
Morale continues to deteriorate in Friartown, as Providence dropped its fourth straight game on Friday. Kim English's squad is currently in last place in the Big East as of writing and the national media is beginning to speculate about replacements for the third-year coach. Noted anonymous insider Curry Hicks Sage said Providence has made moves internally to secure the funds for a buyout should they decide to move on from English.
Iowa State 95 - Kansas State 61
Kansas State fell to 1-8 in Big 12 play and the shine of 2023's Elite Eight run has worn off for Jerome Tang. The Wildcats have lowered their win total every season following Tang's first year and there doesn't appear to be many wins left on the remaining schedule. As with most places, moving on will almost certainly come down to the money. Tang's buyout currently sits at $18.675M, which would be the largest amount paid out in the school's history.
Tiermaker update for February 1.
Here's how I see the current landscape. Have a questions? Shoot me a message in our discord, where you can stay up to date with all the latest in the coaching carousel.
