Some Potential Kansas State Coaching Candidates No One is Talking About

Here are some Kansas State head coaching candidates that no one is discussing that are under-the-radar potential hires.

Furman Paladins head coach Bob Richey greets San Diego State Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

MANHATTAN, Kan. — In a season built on promise with talent to compete for an NCAA Tournament bid, things soured rather quickly.

It led to fourth-year Wildcats coach Jerome Tang being fired mostly for losing grip of the program following a promising start. One Elite Eight run, followed by an NIT appearance, and another season out of the field of 68 entirely had Tang on the hot seat from the jump.

Here' s a few coaches flying under the radar who should at least get a call from the Kansas State search committee.

Bob Richey, Furman

Over the years, Richey and his Furman team have won 22 or more games six times since 2018. He was the one who helped Furman defeat the No. 4 seed Virginia in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

In Richey's second full season as head coach of the Paladins, the team beat Loyola Chicago and Villanova, the defending national champion. Both of those teams made it to the Final Four of the 2018 NCAA tournament.

Furman began the season with a school-record 10–0 record, which put them in the AP Poll for the first time in the school's history. They stayed in the AP Top 25 for three weeks in a row.

Richey and his Furman team won 25 games again the following season, and through his first three full seasons as the head coach of the Paladins, he compiled an overall record of 73-25.

He has been quite choosy about exploring Power Four job openings and has turned down several of them. Numerous national media outlets that cover college basketball stopped putting him on "potential coaching hire" lists because they figure he'll stay in his coaching job at Furman, since he's been there as their head coach since 2017.

But the fact that the Big 12 is the strongest basketball league in the country and needs a new challenge since he has not been able to accomplish his goals, such as taking his Furman team consistently to the NCAA tournament, the Wildcats job may be intriguing to him.

Sundance Wicks, Wyoming

Wicks defines what an "energy" head coach is. He was an assistant coach at places like Colorado and San Francisco, and he made it work at nearly every coaching stop he has been at.

Then, he took over a program in Green Bay, developed a culture of winning, and was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year and the Joe B. Hall National Coach of the Year. In the three seasons before Wicks became the head coach, the Phoenix had a combined record of 16-71.

The following season, Green Bay only managed four victories after Wicks left to take over as head coach of the Cowboys.

You could make a solid case for suggesting that Manhattan, Kansas, needs a coach who can get fans enthused about the team. Wicks is better than any other mid-major coach for talking to and motivating college basketball players, some may argue, especially those who have followed Wicks recently. He plays a mix of solid defenses and loves to have his team participate in fast-paced games.

Wicks currently coaches in the Mountain West, but his "cowboy" persona and blue-collar work ethic fit in wonderfully with the K-State fans.

His Wyoming team went to Texas Tech and almost upset the Red Raiders this season, but lost by a final score of 76-72. His Cowboys have a winning record this season, and Wicks may be an under-the-radar candidate that the Kansas State athletic director may consider for their head coaching vacancy.

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