OSU Basketball: Coaching Candidates To Contemplate

Remember when it looked like Oklahoma State was set to part ways with Travis Ford after the 2014-15 season? The candidates to replace Ford now are much the same as they were then, just a year older and with a couple exceptions.

Gregg Marshall – Wichita State

During the Ford tenure at OSU, Marshall has gone 218-64 and taken the Shockers to a Final Four. He also signed a seven-year contract extension last year to stay at Wichita State that will pay out more than $3 million annually. Marshall should be on the Cowboys’ wish list, but he’s too pricey at this point.

Brad Underwood – Stephen F. Austin

Underwood is a new name to this list after proving himself at SFA for the third-year in a row. The Jacks have made the NCAA Tournament in each of Underwood’s three seasons and, although he signed an eight-year extension in 2014, he’s not long for the Southland Conference. Bigger things ahead for the 52-year-old "up-and-comer." The problem here is not money, but fan support. Will Cowboy fans get behind a relatively inexperienced head coach? Travis Ford was an “up-and-comer” when OSU hired him and see how that turned out.

Buzz Williams – Virginia Tech

Williams is a guy who has popped up among coaching rumors for a long time. Since a solid run at Marquette, Williams has rebuilt the Hokies from an 11-22 team in his first season to a 19-14 team in this, his second year, and he’s done it without any seniors among his top eight scorers. An interesting note about Williams’ current contract: Williams’ buyout goes from $3 million to $1.5 million on March 24th.

Doug Gottlieb – CBS Sports

It’s time to seriously consider Gottlieb as a coaching candidate. He’s the son of a coach, has a brother who’s an assistant at Oregon State and has the Eddie Sutton stamp of approval, what more could one need? Gottlieb has never coached at the college or pro levels but that wasn’t a problem at Iowa State when the Cyclones brought home Fred Hoiberg. Coincidentally, a former media co-worker of Gottlieb’s, Jay Williams, is in the discussion for the Rutgers head coaching job. The #BringDougHome movement is at an all-time level at this point.