Just Because Texas Wishlist is SEC Heavy Doesn't Mean Musselman is on the Menu

Best option for Longhorns is highly familiar with Arkansas, SEC

Author:
Kent Smith
Updated:
Jan 7, 2023 5:25 PM EST
Original:
Jan 5, 2023

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – BREAKING NEWS: Arkansas Razorback men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman has been hired to be the next coach of the Texas Longhorns. Musselman replaces Chris Beard, who was fired in early January following a felony arrest for an alleged domestic violence incident back in December.

Those words were part of the first image that popped in the minds of Arkansas fans the second it was announced Chris Beard was no longer employed in Austin.

BREAKING NEWS: Texas Longhorns star recruit Ron Holland announced today that he will seek his release from his letter of intent with the university and will sign with the Arkansas Razorbacks where he will join former Duncanville Panthers teammate Anthony Black. Holland was able to get out of his signing as a part of a rule that allows players to no longer be bound if the coach they signed with is fired or leaves.

That was the second image that came to mind for Arkansas fans.

In all honesty, odds are unlikely either happens, but the second has higher odds than the first.

There are four names with SEC ties that have popped up immediately in regard to the Longhorns' opening: Musselman, Nate Oats at Alabama, John Calipari at Kentucky and former Wilcats' coach Rick Pitino at Iona.

Musselman is at a college basketball blue blood with a string of big success, a mountain of support, and makes SEC football coach money. His contract this season was relatively equal or more than Tennessee's Josh Heupel, South Carolina's Josh Heupel, Missouri's Eli Drinkwitz, and presumably Vanderbilt's Clark Lea [private universities don't have to disclose contracts].

He has been to consecutive Elite 8 finishes and landed either the best or second best recruiting class in the country depending on which recruiting service you look at, and that's without accounting for the growth of guard Ricky Council into an SEC star.

Now, Beard was making $5 million, but if anyone has ever priced homes in Austin and had to pay tolls on Mopac every day to get to work or pay the insane cost of property taxes in Texas, then you too know that $5 million in Austin is less than $4 million in Fayetteville.

There's also the issue of being a basketball coach at a school where basketball is highly undervalued when compared to Arkansas. Football is No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 at Texas followed by baseball, track and field and professional wrestling before basketball trickles into the picture.

Arkansas doesn't have to hang curtains to black out its upper deck for conference games in a much smaller arena. While the ear-splitting scream of fans helped keep Arkansas in the game in a dramatic comeback over Missouri Wednesday night. That isn't going to happen at Texas.

There definitely won't be any scenes like this.

An Arkansas student rushes the court after the Razorbacks upset Auburn at Bud Walton Arena. — Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

Fans on Court-Auburn — Nelson Chenault / USA TODAY Sports

Arkansas Razorbacks forward Jaylin Williams (10) celebrates with teammates after the game against the Auburn Tigers at Bud Walton Arena. Arkansas won 80-76. — Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

JOHN CALIPARI, Kentucky

When it comes to Musselman's counterpart, John Calipari, you're talking about a man making more than almost any SEC college football coach outside of Nick Saban, Kirby Smart and Brian Kelly.

He is at one of the three bluest of bloods, quite literally considering Duke, North Carolina and Kentucky all have blue color schemes, of all schools. He'd be fired if the top two rows of Rupp Arena were consistently empty, much less the entire upper deck.

Unless Calipari is looking to cut his pay almost in half for the chance to coach in a place with little to no pressure, then this may be his way out of Lexington. However, it's hard to picture Calipari anywhere other than a traditionally elite basketball program or in the NBA.

NATE OATS, Alabama

If Texas truly cared about basketball, Nate Oats would be the target and they wouldn't let money get in the way.

Oats makes a shade over $3 million at Alabama after somehow luring elite talent to play in front of small crowds in the claustrophobic Coleman Coliseum.

USATSI_19720072_168396119_lowres — Alabama center Charles Bediako (14) drives for a shot against Ole Miss forward Jayveous McKinnis (00) at Coleman Coliseum. (Gary Cosby Jr. – USA TODAY Sports)

Going to Texas would be a step down in terms of size of football shadow. While Texas cares about football a lot, the Longhorns are not very good at it, run through coaches like rich men run through wives, and don't have to worry about competing for a national title, much less a dynasty.

Oats contends with Nick Saban and Alabama's obsession with football national championships every single season. No matter how good his team is in March, spring football vastly overshadows anything he does.

Also, while Austin isn't as beautiful as Northwest Arkansas and doesn't worship the local basketball coach like Lexington, Tuscaloosa offers neither of those challenges.

The only issue here is the buyout structure included in the contract to snag Oats away. Considering it's Year 2, Texas would have to drop just short of $10 million.

If it were football, the boosters would scoff at such a paltry number. However, this is basketball and the Texas money men would probably have to get six baptisms at the local church and two more in the Colorado River in hopes of washing away their sins for investing so much money on the basketball side.

Because of this, Oats is a legitimate option, but probably not likely.

RICK PITINO, Iona

This is an option the Board of Regents at Texas might could swallow.

The wars that once went on between Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson and Kentucky's Rick Pitino back in the 90s were epic. Those two single-handedly launched SEC basketball into the national spotlight and the stratosphere as a yearly threat to win the national championship.

South Carolina's Final Four run and Florida's national championships probably don't happen without these two laying the foundation as something more than a Kentucky only league.

Pitino is as Austin as it gets. The slicked back hair and tailored suits.

It's hard to picture him not driving to work in a Tesla.

He's the perfect coach to escort Texas into the SEC. Immediately, two of the league's top programs would have reason to care about Longhorn basketball.

Numerous other fan bases would want to take down Pitino as revenge for old times, thus, by proxy, they will care when Texas comes to town.

The Moody Center might even be able to take down the curtains and have a sell-out when Arkansas rolls onto the schedule as there genuinely may be more Razorback fans in Texas than in Arkansas.

Pitino reportedly makes just shy of $1 million per year. Despite a 25-8 finish to last season, a new board at Iona had no interest in discussing a new contract with Pitino, which means he is still in his original 5-year contract.

Not only does that put Pitino within the acceptable Texas price tag, it makes him motivated to leave.

It also provides Texas with a coach who has SEC experience who won't panic when he walks into Bud Walton or Rupp. It also gives them a man who coaches a brand of basketball recruits love to play.

No other coach can walk into a living room with a pair of national championship rings on and tell stories of taking three different schools to the Final Four and his NBA experience.

There are other names out there, but if Texas is looking to check all of the boxes, Pitino is their man.