Could Utah State be looking for a new men’s basketball coach soon?
The Utah State Aggies men’s basketball team had a very successful 2022-23 season under second-year head coach Ryan Odom, as it earned an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.
But now could Odom be on his way out of Logan?
According to a report from Stadium’s Jeff Goodman on Friday afternoon, Odom “has emerged as one of the top candidates, arguably the frontrunner” for the head coaching job at USF.
Utah State’s Ryan Odom has emerged as one of the top candidates, arguably the frontrunner, for the South Florida opening, source told @Stadium. Odom has won at both UMBC and Utah State.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) March 24, 2023
This marks at least the second time over the past several weeks that the 48-year-old Odom, a North Carolina native, has been linked to a head coaching job on the East Coast.
On March 10, ESPN’s Jeff Borzello reported that High Point, a school in North Carolina, was contemplating “an audacious pursuit” of Odom, although that ultimately fizzled out.
Odom is 44-25 in two seasons in Logan after arriving from UMBC (Maryland-Baltimore County) to replace Craig Smith, who went to Utah.
Odom is most known for leading UMBC to the first-ever win by a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament over a 1 seed. The Retrievers beat Virginia in 2018.
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If Odom does in fact leave for South Florida, he would be replacing Brian Gregory, who was fired on March 10 after six seasons in which he tallied a record of 79-107.
USF is still looking for a coach after it reportedly was in talks to hire former longtime Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey, although Brey told ESPN on Tuesday that while he interviewed for the job, he was not offered it.
Notre Dame coach Mike Brey tells ESPN he interviewed for USF, but was not offered the job. He said he's going to take some time off and pursue television.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 21, 2023
About three hours prior to Goodman’s report Friday, KSL’s Jacob Nielson reported that he had received a statement via a Utah State spokesperson which read, “(University) President (Noelle) Cockett and Interim (Athletic) Director (Jerry) Bovee are committed to retaining Ryan Odom as the USU men’s basketball coach. They look forward to further discussions with him about his continued success at USU.”
Statement I received from a university spokesperson regarding Ryan Odom: “President Cockett and Interim Director Bovee are committed to retaining Ryan Odom as the USU men’s basketball coach. They look forward to further discussions with him about his continued success at USU.”
— Jacob Nielson (@Jacobnielson12) March 24, 2023
