Bob Huggins has resigned as the head men’s basketball coach at West Virginia. They are now in the market for a new head coach. Here are five potential head coaches for West Virginia.
The timing of the Huggins’s resignation isn’t ideal, as rosters are close to being finalized. They’ll need an interim coach to start and Eilert is the frontrunner to land that job. He could be given the job and then keep it for the season with the chance to earn the job.
Eilert has spent 15 seasons as part of the West Virginia basketball program and the last few as an assistant. Hiring someone who can bring stability to the program and hopefully retain the players could be crucial for this season. If he is named the interim coach and does well, Eilert could get the role permanently.
Beilein formerly coached West Virginia from 2002-2007. He also coached at Canisius, Richmond, Michigan and in the NBA. Currently, Beilein is an analyst for the Detroit Pistons, but lives in Morgantown. He could be coaxed into returning to coaching.
While he said he is comfortable not coaching anymore, he hasn’t ruled out a return and it seems like he misses it. With the unique situation, Beilein could return to coach the Mountaineers in an effort to help the university. A second successful run at West Virginia is possible.
A former assistant for West Virginia from 2007-2012, Calhoun has had some success during his coaching career. He also had stops as an assistant at Cincinnati, Walsh and Fairmount State. Currently, he is the head coach at Youngstown State where he has a 96-96 record over six seasons.
Calhoun has done a great job with the Penguins at Youngstown State considering they haven’t had a lot of success since becoming a Division I program. He also has familiarity with the program and that could make it easier for him as he gets started. Calhoun would be a great hire given the circumstances.
Butler is a former West Virginia great who spent 2006 to 2010 at the school. He averaged 14.3 points per game during his career and helped the Mountaineers make the Final Four. After some time in the G-League and overseas as a player, Butler has been a coach for a few years. He was an assistant at Wheeling Jesuit in 2021. Later that year, he was hired to be an assistant of the College Park Skyhawks of the G-League.
There are some concerns with hiring Butler. He has no head coaching experience and there are more qualified candidates out there. Butler would have some familiarity with the program and has some name recognition that could help keep some of the players on campus.
Joe Mazzulla is a former West Virginia player and is currently the head coach of the Celtics. There were some question marks about whether he would return and the Celtics didn’t make a move. He coached the team to the Eastern Conference Finals after getting the job right before the season. Before that he had assistant coaching stops at Glenville State, Fairmount State, the Maine Red Claws and the Celtics.
Would Mazzulla leave the NBA to coach West Virginia? Probably not. But his alma mater should call and gauge the interest. Failing to win an NBA title this year could result in him being fired, as even coaches who have titles have been fired this offseason. There is a slim chance they could get Mazzulla to be their head coach, either now or after an interim coach is in place for this season.
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