Just two days after Xavier’s season ended in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Milwaukee, head coach Sean Miller has left to take over at the University of Texas, according to multiple reports.
Miller, who returned to Xavier in March 2022 and led the Musketeers to the NCAA Tournament twice in three seasons, leaves a program where he spent eight seasons and ranks third all-time in career wins.
Texas was rumored to be in the mix for Miller after the 2022-23 season, but athletic director Chris Del Donte ultimately removed the interim tag from Rodney Terry’s job title after leading the Longhorns past the Miller-led Musketeers in the Sweet 16.
Texas fired Terry Sunday afternoon, just four days after falling to Xavier in the First Four at UD Arena.
It also leaves plenty of questions that need to be answered quickly. First and foremost, Xavier is losing seven players who are out of eligibility and have a pair of starters that can return in Dailyn Swain and Ryan Conwell.
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Those two would’ve been vital pieces for the Musketeers next season. Now, there is uncertainty where Xavier stands with the NCAA transfer portal set to officially open on Monday.
Xavier also has four other players eligible to return who were added by Miller and company through the portal last season: Roddie Anderson, Lassina Traore, John Hugley IV and Cam Fletcher.
In November, Xavier signed a pair of 4-star recruits in Nyk Lewis and Jayden Forsythe in the Class of 2025. Whether either incoming freshman will stick around is up in the air.
For now, Xavier’s top priority is finding the next face of the program. Here are some candidates.
Chris Mack
Chris Mack seems to make the most sense after Xavier’s success with Miller in his second time stint with the Musketeers.
Mack won more games (215) than any coach in Xavier history during his nine seasons as head coach from 2009-2018. During his nine seasons at Xavier, Mack led the Musketeers to the NCAA Tournament eight times, including four trips to the Sweet 16 and an Elite Eight run in 2017.
In Mack’s final season in 2018, Xavier was a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
Chris Mack left Xavier to replace Rick Pitino as the head coach at Louisville in 2018. Mack led Louisville to the NCAA Tournament in his first season, then had the Cardinals in position (24-7) for a March Madness bid in 2020 before the season was canceled due to the pandemic.
Mack and Louisville parted ways midway through the 2021-22 season. After a two-year hiatus, Mack was hired as the next head coach at Charleston in March 2024.
Mack earned his 300th career win in February and led Charleston to a 24-9 record. The Cougars lost to UNC-Wilmington by a point in the Coastal Athletic Association Tournament semifinals.
Luke Murray
The last time Xavier hired a first-time head coach turned into a disaster as Travis Steele led the program for four seasons without an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Murray just wrapped up his fourth season as an assistant coach under Dan Hurley at UConn. The Huskies lost to No. 1 Florida in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Sunday.
Murray was an assistant on four NCAA Tournament teams at UConn, including back-to-back national championship seasons in 2023 and 2024. Murray, the son of actor Bill Murray, worked under Hurley at Wagner and Rhode Island, and under Mack at Xavier (2015-2018) and Louisville.
Richard Pitino
If Xavier wanted to make a splash, it would be Pitino, who would join his father in the Big East after turning New Mexico into one of the top programs in the Mountain West.
Over the last four seasons, Pitino has posted an 88-48 record and led the Lobos to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
New Mexico, a No. 10 seed, upset No. 7 Marquette in the first round on Friday, 75-66. The Lobos were set to play No. 2 Michigan State in the second round Sunday night in Cleveland.
Mitch Henderson
There have already been a few successful mid-major coaches ink deals elsewhere in this year’s coaching carousel. McNeese State’s Will Wade is headed to NC State, Virginia is hiring Ryan Odom from VCU and Iowa is finalizing a deal with Drake’s Ben McCollum, according to reports on Sunday.
Could Xavier sweep Henderson from the post he’s held at Princeton since 2011? Henderson ranks third all-time at Princeton in wins (251) and has led the Tigers to four regular season conference titles and pair of conference tournament championships and NCAA Tournament trips in the Ivy League. Princeton went to the Sweet 16 in 2023.
