“I just didn’t feel like that I could successfully navigate this whole new world that I was dealing with.” – Jim Larranga
‘Twas the day after Christmas, and all was doom and dimmer. Then came Jim Larranga, who sent shockwaves through Twitter. Final Fours, Elite Eights, what a basketball mind. But now there’s a replacement, that Miami must find.
If you had told me two years ago that Jim Larranga would be retiring from coaching in late December 2024, I wouldn’t have believed you. Larranga’s Miami team would have been coming off an Elite Eight appearance followed by a Final Four run. But since then, the Hurricanes have been a power conference bottom dweller. After starting 12-2 last season, the Hurricanes only went on to win four more games and ended the game on a ten game losing streak. After starting 3-0 this season, Miami has since lost 8 of their last 9 games. In total, they’ve gone 4-18 in their last 22 games. Those four wins came at the expense of Fairleigh Dickinson, Binghamton, Coppin State, and Presbyterian. With that said, it was probably overdue for the U to make a change. With Coach Larranga’s mid-season retirement, long time associate head coach Bill Courtney will be the interim head coach.
Of course, there’s always the possibility of Miami over-exceeding expectations and retaining the job. We saw that with Jake Diebler at Ohio State last year. But this article is meant to be close to an all encompassing list of the best candidates should Miami choose to go in a different direction at the end of the season. I’ve assembled nine tiers with two coaches per tier, which is the equivalent of 18 potential coaches that this article will discuss. Some are mid-major masterminds, drooling at the opportunity to make their way up the totem pole, while others are already high major coaches who may be envious of Miami’s Canes Connection NIL Collective. There’s also some assistant coaches who could make some sense and even some NBA possibilities who could be itching to make their way into the college ranks.
Without further ado, let’s break the options down:
Tier 1: The Up and Comers
Ben McCollum, Drake
Before taking the Drake job, McCollum has gone 394-91 at the division two level coaching Northwest Missouri State, while also winning four of the last seven national championships. It’s conceivable to say Northwest Missouri State may have won a fifth national championship if the tournament happened in the 2020 COVID year. Defense is typically McCollum’s team’s calling cards. On offense, Drake has played at the third slowest tempo in the country. And it’s worth noting that Drake is off to a scorching 11-0 start, making McCollum one of four undefeated teams remaining in the country.
When watching Drake’s offense, McCollum’s teams run a lot of NBA sets that would be suitable for a high major team like Miami. As noticed by The Center Hub’s very own, Maxwell Giger, Coach McCollum runs off ball actions with weak side spacers, on ball actions with a third screener or action player, and even runs some sets he stole from Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors.
McCollum has high major coach written all over him, it’s just a matter of time of quickly he can rise up the division one ranks.
Bucky McMillan, Samford
If we take out McMillan’s inaugural season, the Bulldogs have gone 81-31 in McMillan’s four years, including this year. That’s a .720 win percentage. It took some time for “Bucky Ball” to take full effect, but last year, it was completely unleashed. Last season the Bulldogs played with the eighth quickest pace in the country. They press you on defense after made baskets and try to force turnovers, which allowed them to rank 5th in the nation in forcing turnovers. Meanwhile, on offense, Samford shot 39.5% from three last season, which was 4th in the nation, while also scoring 86.1 points per game, fifth in the nation. When McMillan’s team isn’t shooting threes on offense, they’re running the fast break or getting easy shots, as evidence by their 58.1% effective field goal percentage, which was eighth in the nation.
McMillan is a name that could’ve (and probably should’ve) been in the madness that we call the coaching carousel this past cycle. His rotations runs deep, as his “Bucky Ball” style allows the Bulldogs to play legitimately ten deep. Not only that, but Samford hasn’t had a player play over 27 minutes per game since 2022-23. McMillan is well on his way to securing his fourth 21+ win season in a row.
Tier 2: The U and Larranga Ties
Chris Caputo, George Washington
Caputo is a name to be on the look out for given he has ties to both Jim Larranga and Miami. Caputo was an assistant at both Miami and George Mason under Jim Larranga before taking over as the head man at GW. According to the Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman, Caputo is a name to watch out for if Miami isn’t able to land a bigger fish:
George Washington is currently 11-2 as A10 play starts. In Caputo’s first two seasons, the Revoluntaries finished 31-33. I’d imagine GW would need to finish multiple games over .500 this season for Caputo to have a realistic chance at such a high-profile job despite the ties.
Adam Fisher, Temple
Fisher was Director of Operations for Miami U from 2013-15 before becoming an assistant coach from 2015-21. Fisher’s Owls went 16-20 last season but made a run to the AAC Conference Championship before losing to UAB., In Fisher’s second (and next year’s third) season, his Temple team put together the top recruiting class in the AAC this and next year. In both 2016-17 and 2017-18, while an assistant under Coach Larranga, Fisher helped Miami secure commitments for top 15 recruiting classes nationally back-to-back years. Given his recruiting pedigree and his experience on Miami’s bench, few other candidates have the inside track that Fisher does in terms of knowing how to recruit to the U specifically.
Similar to Caputo, Temple would probably need to overachieve a bit this season for Fisher to be a serious candidate for this job, but the Owls currently sit at 7-4 in the standings. It’s also worth noting that former Temple point guard Hysier Miller is currently under an FBI investigation for conduct involving potentially fixing games, which would have occurred under Fisher’s watch. While parts of the investigation are closed, and it seems that no punishment is occurring for Temple’s program itself, it’s tough not to wonder how it’ll affect Fisher in the interview process for a high-major job.
Tier 3: The Gainesville Connection
Todd Golden, Florida
This one is unlikely for multiple reasons. First off, the Gators sit at 12-0, one of four remaining undefeated teams in the country. Secondly, Golden has been accused of multiple Title IX sexual harassment as well as stalking allegations by multiple UF students. With a perfect record thus far while also about to start conference play in the best conference in the sport, Golden’s job wouldn’t be in jeopardy due to his success as a coach and the product on the court. But with these allegations hanging above his head, it’s possible Golden’s days could be numbered for that reason alone. Given Golden’s accusers are students of the school, the writing could be on the wall at any moment’s notice.
Golden has done an excellent job as a coach in both player retention and navigating the recruiting trail. Additionally, Florida currently ranked 6th offensively and 16th defensively in the country, per KenPom. While there are over 300 miles between Gainesville and Coral Gables, the ability to recruit down in Florida, as well as the massive NIL budget and the power conference experience, make Golden check multiple boxes on paper. However, I don’t believe Florida will make any coaching changes until due process plays itself out at this point, which makes Golden an unlikely candidate.
Mike White, Georgia
White, the man Golden replaced at UF, is having a successful year in Georgia. The Bulldogs currently sit at 11-1, but given the depth of the SEC, the Miami job can become appealing. Georgia, at best, will likely often be a mid-tier SEC team at best. Meanwhile, at Miami, White would have the possibility to contend for ACC championships along with Duke and UNC. Additionally, being a basketball coach at a football-dominated school has negative aspects regarding NIL allocation.
While White is from Dunedin, Florida (289 miles away from the U’s campus), he already has experience recruiting within the state and the state that borders Florida. During his time with Florida, White amassed a 142-88 record, and Florida made the NCAA tournament every year during White’s tenure, and the Gators peaked as an Elite Eight team in 2016-17. While this job opening will have no shortage of candidates, White’s success 300 miles down the road at Florida, while also being in the thick of it in this year’s loaded SEC, makes him extremely qualified if he threw his hat in the ring.
Tier 4: The UConn Assistants
Luke Murray & Kimani Young, UConn Assistants
Young, the associate head coach at UConn under Dan Hurley, works closely with UConn’s perimeter players and determines its defensive infrastructure. During his time on Hurley’s staff, Young has worked closely with guards such as Jordan Hawkins, James Bouknight, and Tristen Newton. The Huskies boasted a top-ten defense when they won back-to-back national championships.
Murray, meanwhile, does the opposite of Young. Murray works with frontcourt players and coordinates the offense for Coach Hurley. Murray played an integral part in the Huskies’ #1 ranked offense last season. Murray also had the opportunity to work under Coach Hurley at Wagner and Rhode Island previously. In 2019, while Murray was the Recruiting Coordinator at Louisville, 247sports ranked Murray as the third-best recruiter in the county. Murray is thought of extremely highly in the industry as a recruiter, coach, and basketball mind.
Dan Hurley has been adamant that both Young and Murray deserve a shot as head coaches in the near future. Both guys were named as two of the 40 most influential people in college basketball under 40 by The Athletic. With this said, these are the only two candidates on this list who don’t have prior head coaching experience, but that shouldn’t stop AD Dan Radakovich from pursuing one or both of them.
Tier 5: The Chris’s
Chris Beard, Ole Miss
Beard is 202-86 as a coach and has never had a losing record in his ten seasons as a head coach. While in his second year at Ole Miss, Beard is 31-12. Traditionally, Beard-coached teams were known for their defensive identities. From 2018 to 2021, while at Texas Tech, the Red Raiders ranked 4th, 1st, 9th, and 18th in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency. At Miami, Larranga’s defense peaked at 18th overall in 2013. With this said Beard would add a different element than the Hurricanes have had under Larranga. While Miami made the Elite 8 in 2022 and the Final Four in 2023, Beard would be an easy sell, as he took Texas Tech to the national championship in 2019, where they lost to Virginia.
Chris Mack, College of Charleston
Of all the candidates on this list, Mack has the most previous experience and familiarity with the ACC. Not only was Mack the head coach at Louisville for 3.5 years, but he was also an assistant at Wake Forest from 2001-04. Mack has a 288-136 (.679 win percentage) and has College of Charleston off to a 10-3 start. Mack, who previously coached at Xavier and Louisville, should be ready to join the high major ranks once again, and his previous ACC ties make him a strong candidate.
Aside from the aforementioned ACC experience, Mack also has experience leading his teams to the NCAA tournament. Mack’s team has made the NCAA tournament nine times in 12 years, and one of those was when the tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. Mack also led Xavier to the Elite Eight in 2017.
Tier 6: The Miller Brothers
Archie Miller, Rhode Island
Despite making the NCAA tournament in four straight years at Dayton before taking the Indiana job, Miller failed to make it to the NCAA tournament at any point at the helm for Indiana. As a result, Miller finds himself now in Rhode Island after being fired from Indiana in 2021. Through Miller’s first two years at Rhode Island, the Rams have gone 21-42. However, the Rams are off to an unexpected 11-1 start this year. With this Rhode Island team, Miller is having his team play a way his teams traditionally don’t: uptempo. In fact, in Year 13 as a head coach, the Rams 19th ranked tempo in the country is by the only time Miller’s teams have played with a tempo that ranked in the top 100 nationally.
While at Dayton and Indiana, Miller’s teams were known for their defensive identity. He runs a pack line defense, similar to that of Tom Izzo at Michigan State. Miller not only has experience with the NCAA tournament during his time with Dayton, but he also got to experience recruiting at a high major level, as he recruited multiple McDonald’s All-Americans to Indiana during his tenure. Miller also coached on his brother Sean’s staff at Arizona for three years as an assistant. It’s also worth noting Miller played his college ball in the ACC at NC State.
Sean Miller, Xavier
Archie’s older brother, Sean, is a prime candidate for the Miami job. Over his last 18 years of coaching, Miller has seen 26 of his players achieve their dreams of playing in the NBA. Not only does Miller have 8 years total over two stints coaching at Xavier, but he was extremely accomplished in 12 years at Arizona. Overall, Miller is an impressive 473-189 as a head coach. However, 50 of those wins were vacated due to NCAA recruiting violations while at Arizona. Miller has been to four Elite Eights and four additional Sweet 16s.
Not only does Miller know how to win, but he knows how to recruit. During Miller’s first stint at Xavier, he had five different transfers during his tenure come to Xavier and earn All-Conference honors. At Arizona, Miller did the same thing, having five different transfers become All-Conference, while two made the NBA. All of this before NIL and before the portal truly became what it is today. If Miller had access to the resources and NIL Collective that Miami has, he would not only be a dynamite recruiter, but he’d build a consistent winner. He was one of my favorite names on this list for the U.
Tier 7: Getting Back to the High Majors
Will Wade, McNeese
Wade is another popular name amongst speculative coaching candidates for the Miami job. Wade has had success everywhere he’s coached, whether mid-major or high-major. Most recently, last year’s McNeese team went 30-4 and is currently sitting at 7-5 despite a hard non-conference schedule. For McNeese, Wade has recruited like he’s at a high major, as he’s added players from the Big East, ACC, Pac-12, A10, and high-level mid-major guys.
The only reason Wade isn’t still at a high major is due to an FBI probe that led to his firing at LSU for recruiting violations. While it’s been impressive that Wade’s been able to recruit and win out of the Southland Conference, it’s only a matter of time until he’s back at a high-major job. It’s a little concerning that his current McNeese roster is shooting a porous 28.4% from three and is nearly dead last in the nation in assisters per field goal made, but the roster speaks for itself in some respect. Last season, McNeese was one of seven programs to reach the 30-win threshold.
The main question for Wade is if Miami is the job he’d want to pursue. There’s been speculation Wade would want to make his way back to the SEC, with some speculation that his eye is on the Oklahoma job if Porter Moser decides to go elsewhere. Either way, for such a good recruiter, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the opportunity Miami presents in terms of being able to get those recruits. We already know Wade can recruit, and we already know that Wade can win. He would be an excellent candidate to help a program in a declining conference maintain national relevance year after year.
Richard Pitino, New Mexico
There was some speculation during last year’s carousel that Pitino was the frontrunner for the Louisville job before the Cardinals ultimately hired Pat Kelsey. Pitino is 58-25 as a head coach since beginning his second season at New Mexico. Pitino was also the last coach to take Minnesota to the NCAA Tournament seven seasons ago. While this is Pitino’s 13th season as a head coach, he has been to the NCAA tournament just three years. However, there’s been a common theme throughout this article: recruiting.
Pitino has recruited transfers such as Jaelen House and Jamal Mashburn Jr. (who followed him from Minnesota) and freshmen such as Donovan Dent and JT Toppin. He recruited Dent out of Corona, California, and Toppin from Dallas, Texas. Additionally, starter Tru Washington was recruited out of Phoenix, Arizona. I preface this by saying that Pitino is able to recruit all across the country and would even be able to expand his horizons in Miami.
Tier 8: The NBA Options
Chris Quinn, Miami Heat Assistant
Quinn is the longest tenured assistant coach on Erik Spoelstra’s staff and was recently promoted to Associate Head Coach. You ever hear of “Heat Culture?” Quinn is a big part of that. Not only did Quinn play for Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra from 2006-2010, but during his first six years on the Heat bench, he was an Assistant Coach of Player Development and Assistant Coach/Director of Player Development.
Ask Heat insiders who most embodies the team’s culture, and Quinn is commonly the answer (one league source affectionately referred to Quinn as Spoelstra’s “mini-me” for his temperament and organizational skills). He’s an emotionally stable leader who inspires confidence in players, as revealed when he filled in for Spoelstra as head coach for a stint in March and April. – Kevin Arnovitz in an ESPN article in 2022.
One game, where Quinn filled in as acting head coach for a sick Erik Spoelstra, team captain Udonis Haslem said “When you listen to Quinny, you’re hearing Spo. It’s the same message.” Haslem added, “He has the knowledge, the experience, the relationship with the players. He has every base covered when you talk about checking the boxes to have the ability to be a successful head coach.”
Quinn has interviewed for multiple NBA head coaching jobs, including the Indiana Pacers in 2020 and the Washington Wizards in 2021. If Miami wanted to hire a coach with local ties but also make a BYU-type splash, a la Kevin Young, Quinn’s their guy. Had Kevin Young not taken the BYU job, he’d probably be the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets right now. Quinn also does have some college coaching experience, as he was the Director of Player Development for Northwestern for one season.
Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls
Donovan is quite literally one of the top coaches in college basketball history and if it weren’t for UConn’s Dan Hurley, he’d be the last coach to have gone back-to-back in the national championship. While Donovan made the jump to the NBA in 2015, it seems that the Chicago Bulls are likely to go in a different direction sooner rather than later. If the Bulls (or Donovan) decided to part ways during this current NBA season, this could be a match. However, if Donovan or the Bulls wait until the end of the season, that may be too late, as Miami is likely to hire a coach by late March or early April at the latest, and the NBA season isn’t over until mid-April.
Again, as a college coach, Donovan would be the most accomplished candidate on this list. While the head coach at Florida, Donovan won two national championships, made four Final Fours, and made three additional Elite Eights. Donovan also has coached NBA stars such as Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, etc. Admittedly, Donovan would need to adjust to the landscape of college basketball, which has changed since he was last in Florida in 2015. Still, he can definitely manage egos, have the opportunity to build a roster, and knows how to win at the collegiate level.
Tier 9: The Frontrunners
Jerome Tang, Kansas State
My favorite candidate for this coaching carousel is Jerome Tang. During Bruce Weber’s final three seasons at Kansas State, the Wildcats went 34-58 overall and 13-41 in conference play. They were the Big 12 bottom dweller. Then came Coach Tang, who immediately made Kansas State a 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament in year one, coaching the Wildcats to a 26-10 record. Tang has also done an excellent job at recruiting. While this year they secured their $2 million man in Coleman Hawkins, the Wildcats were in the running for 2025 #1 recruit AJ Dybansta and for #2026 5-star Darryn Peterson.
While it’s believed that Kansas State has one of the biggest NIL collectives in the country, Miami’s collective is as well. Miami actually has one of the biggest known boosters, John Ruiz. In fact, there’s a connection between Ruiz, Miami, and Kansas State. When Kansas State point guard Nijel Pack entered the transfer portal in 2022, Ruiz offered Pack $800,000, which included a new car to sign a two-year NIL deal for Pack to play for the Hurricanes. Additionally, when star guard Isaiah Wong was planning on entering the portal to seek more NIL money, Ruiz made sure he was compensated to stay. While Kansas State had enough money to pay Hawkins $2 million, along with additional transfer additions, Tang’s program clearly isn’t starving for money.
However, while Kansas State is in a great spot financially, there could be a thought in Tang’s head that the Wildcats program will always be the “little brother” to the Kansas Jayhawks, the team that the aforementioned Darryn Peterson ended up choosing. According to 247sports, Miami’s NIL collective is the fifth best in the country. If Tang was able to take a mid to lower-tier team in the Big 12 to a recruiting and NIL empire, what could he do with Miami in the ACC?
Anthony Grant, Dayton
My final candidate is Anthony Grant, Dayton coach. Grant is a graduate of Miami Senior High School and got his coaching start as an assistant coach there from 1987-1992. Meanwhile, in 17 seasons as a collegiate head coach, Grant has only had a losing record twice and has a 352-185 record. Once during 2013-14 in Alabama and once during his first year at Dayton. It’s even conceivable to say that if the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t occur, Dayton may have won the NCAA Tournament in 2020. It’s also worth noting he may have turned down the Florida job in each of their last two job openings.
While Grant has experience coaching in Florida (he was an assistant there for ten years), the possibility of coaching in his hometown could appeal to him. Grant is also a Dayton alumnus and played for legendary coach Don Donoher. Grant may be living his dream job while coaching at Dayton, but again, the possibility of coaching at the U in his hometown could be appealing too. Grant is more than due for a high-major job, but he may be completely content in his current position.
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