Nine Louisville basketball coach contenders to replace Chris Mack, from Kenny Payne to Bruce Pearl
Chris Mack appears to be on his way out of Louisville.
According to many reports , the school and Mack are moving toward a separation agreement that can be reached on Wednesday. Mack has been suspended for the first six games of this season for violating school guidelines in the investigation into former assistant coach Dino Gaudio.
Louisville is also working with an interim athletic director at Josh Heird, who replaced Vince Tyra in December. The school also has no full-time president.
That’s pretty messy. On the field, Mack had records of 68-37 and 38-23 in the ACC game. The total of Cardinals is 11-9 and being in eighth place in what is considered a down year for the ACC. Interim coach Mike Pegues will be in charge of turning the situation around.
GIVE ADVICE: Pearl will go crazy taking a job in Louisville
So who is next for the show? Sporting News analyzes several possible candidates for an unpredictable search because of unrest within the sports department and schools.
Louisville Cardinals Coaching Candidates
Kenny Payne, assistant coach NY Knicks
Payne played for Louisville’s 1986 national championship team under Denny Crum, and he was an assistant to Kentucky coach John Calipari from 2010-20. The 55-year-old has moved on to the NBA, where he has worked as an assistant for New York for the past two seasons. Those close relationships would make Payne a good candidate, and the show would make history by hiring its first African-American coach.
Scott Davenport, Bellarmine Coach
Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde also hash out the case for Davenport , who has won 386 games in Division 2 Bellarmine in Louisville since taking over in 2005. Davenport is a Louisville native who played for the Cardinals and was an assistant to both Denny Crum and Rick Pitino. The Knights have moved to Division 1 and participated in the 2020 Atlantic Sun Conference, and they are currently in second place in West ASun. Davenport, 64, would be a secure tenant with a lifelong sense of accomplishment to it, but that might be what the show needs.
Bruce Pearl, coach Auburn
Scan the Louisville message board, and this is one of the popular choices. Auburn is currently #1 in the AP Poll, and Pearl, 61, has won every stop. That said, he was given a three-year disciplinary penalty after leaving Tennessee, and Auburn’s assistant coach Chuck Person was fired in 2014 as part of a college basketball investigation of the FBI. Louisville has also been in the NCAA since the end of the Rick Pitino era.
Nate Oats, Alabama Coach
Oats would be an outcast, but the 47-year-old may be ready to level up. He led Buffalo to three NCAA appearances in four years from 2015-18, and Alabama was seeded #2 and made it to the Sweet Round of 16 at last year’s tournament. It took Oats just two years to complete that turnaround, and he’ll continue to be a candidate for the green-blooded jobs when they open.
Kelvin Sampson, Houston coach
Sampson also had a gratuitous five-year sentence stemming from NCAA violations during his time in Indiana, but the Houston redemption is no doubt impressive. The Cougars reached the Finals last year and did not miss a beat in 2021-22 despite serious injury problems. Would Sampson, 66, have one last fun on the big stage at ACC if called upon?
Steve Forbes, Coach of Wake Forest
Forbes, 56, is a complete story. After being fired at Tennessee as a member of Pearl for violating NCAA rules, he took his first college head coach job at the junior college level and he He led Northwest Florida State to consecutive NJCAA national championships from 2011-13. He had a 130-43 record in five seasons with East Tennessee State, and Wake Forest made an impressive move in his second season. Louisville defeated Wake Forest 73-69 on December 29.
Mike Boynton, Oklahoma State coach
Boynton, 40, is one of the upcoming coaches in the Big 12. The Cowboys are ineligible to compete after this season. Boynton brought Cade Cunningham to play at Oklahoma State, and that led to an NCAA tournament last season. Is the Boynton upgradeable? He has a 31-41 record in the Big 12 game.
Buzz Williams, Texas A&M Coach
Williams has no qualms about moving around. He’s coached at Marquette, Virginia Tech and Texas A&M since 2008, and he’s getting up to speed in his 10th season with at least 20 wins over the past 15 years. Williams knows the ACC and has put together an impressive run with the Hokies, and he should be able to replicate that to a minimum with the resources at Louisville. Williams has a win percentage of 0.668 at Marquette, the highest of his three stops. The Cardinals can work with that.
Ed Cooley, Providence Coach
Cooley, 52, is in his 11th season with Providence. The brothers are ready to participate in this season’s NCAA tournament. Providence had five consecutive tournament appearances from 2013-17. This isn’t a flashy hire, but Cooley is a no-brainer that can work.
