First Look at Potential Head Coaches for Kansas State Basketball

Kansas State has officially parted ways with now-former Wildcats head coach Jerome Tang, and the search for a new head coach for K-State is officially underway.

Miami (Oh) Redhawks head coach Travis Steele | Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Athletic Director Gene Taylor is looking for a new coach to lead the Wildcats for the 2026-27 season.

Here is a quick look at some of the current Division One head coaches that Kansas State may pursue and eventually interview for their now vacant head coaching job.

First, a look at some mid-major coaches that they may want to look at to be their next head coach.

Jerrod Calhoun of Utah State
Calhoun has a proven track record, leading Utah State to the top of the Mountain West this season, as his team is currently in first place with an overall record of 22-3. He is considered an elite offensive mind among many who follow college basketball, and his teams have won 22 or more games in the last four seasons that he has coached at Youngstown State, not Utah State. He is also a coach who is a realistic head coaching candidate for the Wildcats.

Travis Steele of Miami of Ohio
Steele has Miami (OH) as the last undefeated team in the country this season. He has previous high-mid-major experience at Xavier, and after being relieved of his duties there, he is in his third season as the RedHawks coach. He has turned Miami (OH) into arguably one of the best mid-major teams this season. His team has won at least 25 games in the past two seasons. He looks ready for a chance at a Power 5 job, and K-State has a legit opportunity to convince him to come to Manhattan, Kansas.

Ben Jacobson of Northern Iowa
Someone who knows the Midwest landscape, Jacobson has won over 350 games at UNI and had a run from 2009 to 2016 of taking his team to the NCAA Tournament four times. The teams that he has coached have won at least 19 games in four of the last six seasons. He is unlikely to be the Wildcats' next head coach but may be worthy of an interview.

Casey Alexander of Belmont
Alexander is considered a "program builder" by many college basketball experts. He has been consistently successful at Belmont, having won at least 20 games since he took over the program during the 2019-2020 season. He primarily focuses on player development and high school evaluation rather than just adding players through the transfer portal. This would be a shift from the Tang era’s portal-heavy approach toward long-term stability,, and many Wildcat fans may welcome this change in coaching philosophy.

Josh Schertz of Saint Louis
Schertz is widely considered by some as the most sought-after mid-major coach who could leave for a Power Four head coaching job. He is currently leading the Billikens to an amazing 24-1 record, with their only loss of the season being a one-point loss to Stanford. He has proven that he can win at the Division I level, as he turned around Indiana State after leading them to back-to-back winning seasons before deciding to become the head coach at Saint Louis. K-State’s NIL resources could be enough to lure him to the Big 12 and be the Wildcats' next head coach.

Many K-State fans may want Schertz as their next coach, and it is perfectly understandable why they would. Calhoun would make the most sense out of this group, and Steele would be the perfect in-the-moment pick as well. All three could easily have success in Manhattan, and there is no argument against them possibly taking over for Tang. However, Alexander may be the selection here for various reasons, including that he is the most consistently winning coach in this group, who has proven that he can take a program and turn them into a winner. The problem is that he is a Belmont alum, and he would need some convincing to leave the school he played for and now coaches.

Now a look at some Power Four conference head coaching candidates.

Chris Jans of Mississippi State
Jans is perhaps the most logical Power 4 target for the Wildcats for one obvious reason. Though he has a history of winning at New Mexico State and has turned Mississippi State into a consistent NCAA Tournament team the last three seasons, he and the donors and alums in Starkville may benefit from a mutual parting of ways. Jans has a 1-6 NCAA Tournament record, and he is 0-3 in the tournament as the Bulldogs' head coach. Mississippi State currently has a losing record of 12-13, and he and the Bulldog fans may both benefit from his leaving and becoming the next head coach of the Wildcats.

Listed above talked about the reasons he may leave Mississippi State, but here are some reasons why K-State fans may want him as their next head coach. He is a "defense-first" coach who fits the blue-collar identity in Manhattan and the Wildcats fansbase. With K-State's basketball-centric focus and strong NIL backing, they could potentially convince him that a school like Kansas State is not a football-heavy school like Mississippi State. Though the Wildcats love their football program, they invest in and support their basketball program.

Porter Moser of Oklahoma
Moser has deep roots in the region and an undeniable energy that reflects what K-State fans loved about Jerome Tang’s early tenure. He is similar to Jans in that he is a proven head coach at a heavily football-supported school and that he has not won a game in the NCAA Tournament while coaching the Sooners. His team is 13-12 this season, and Sooner fans and he may benefit from him leaving to possibly take the K-State head coaching job.

Oklahoma’s transition to the SEC has been a challenge for its basketball program and coach Moser. With a new athletic director in Roger Denny, recently taking over in Norman, Moser might look for a "fresh start" back in the Big 12, where his style of play and recruiting ties are a natural match for him at Kansas State. He, since the 2017-18 season, except for his second season at Oklahoma, has been successful in one way or another. He may be the coach that Wildcat fans want and need to be their next head coach.

Wes Miller of Cincinnati
Miller is currently navigating the Big 12 at Cincinnati in his fifth season as the Bearcats coach. While he has faced some pressure due to not making the NCAA tournament, he is still regarded as one of the best young tactical minds among the Power Four coaches. He has not had one losing season in Cincy and has won 22 or more games twice while the coach of the Bearcats. He has his flaws, and Cincinnati fans will be quick to point them out to anyone who will listen, but he proved at UNC Greensboro that he will not let his program get to where K-State's basketball program has been the past two seasons.

If K-State wants a younger, tactical-minded coach who already understands the specific scouting and travel challenges of the current Big 12, Miller is a strong option. Moving from one Big 12 school to another is not common, but K-State's recent investment in facilities and NIL might be just what Miller needs to take the Wildcats program back to where they were in 2023.

I don't think many Wildcat fans would be thrilled with hiring Miller, and Moser may not be what the fanbase necessarily wants in their next coach, but Jans may just be the best choice of these three coaches, as K-State fans want consistency and a defensive-minded coach who can get the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament almost every year.

Stay up to date with the Wildcats by bookmarking Kansas State On SI   and following us on X/Twitter.