Texas got their man when they hired Chris Beard. The former Texas Tech coach accepted the role after Shaka Smart and the university mutually agreed to part ways.
The search is over.
Texas hires Chris Beard as the new @TexasMBB Head Coach pic.twitter.com/GF8S1Utm7A
— Longhorn Network (@LonghornNetwork) April 1, 2021
Beard is just what the Longhorns need. A hard-nosed defensive coach who has proven that he can win in Lubbock against Big XII competition something Smart (51-56 conference record) didn’t do enough of. Beard had a 49-40 record at Texas Tech.
Recruiting hasn’t been a problem for Texas despite being labeled at a football school and it won’t be under Beard.
Assistant coach Ulric Maligi is heading to Texas with Chris Beard, source told ESPN. Had been in Lubbock the last two seasons, previously spent time at Texas A&M, SMU and others. Really connected in the state, high-level recruiter.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) April 2, 2021
The key for Beard will be winning with the talent he gets to come to Austin. Smart definitely didn’t do enough of that. Under Smart’s tenure he could get talent to come to Austin, he just couldn’t win with it.
2015 – three 4-stars
2016 – one 5-star; two 4-stars
2017 – one 5-star; four 4-stars
2018 – five 4-stars
2019 – three 4-stars
2020 – one 5-star
Even with this much talent, Smart couldn’t win a tournament game.
This won’t be a problem under Beard. He’s a proven winner who attracted basketball talent to a Big XII school that had become an after thought.
Kudos to Texas. They have been notorious for getting their football coaching hires wrong.
Lucky for them, they got their basketball hire right.
