Ole Miss Basketball's Chris Beard a 'Primary Candidate' for Texas A&M Aggies Job

Beard is fresh off of a Sweet 16 run with the Rebels, linked to Aggies head coaching vacancy.

Mar 21, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard during the first half of a first round NCAA men’s tournament game against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

Chris Beard and the Ole Miss Rebels are fresh off of a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament with the program quickly turning around in Oxford.

In his second season at the helm of the Rebels, Beard has transformed Ole Miss into a competitive program in the Southeastern Conference.

The 2024-25 season became a rewarding one for Beard and Co. with the year feeling "different" for the Rebels' shot-caller.

"Every season ends for every team except for one, with the feelings we have right now. It's a little bit different for me this year. You dread that walk back to the locker room to talk to your guys, but this year just felt different," Beard said following the loss to Michigan State.

"I'm just so thankful. I've never been this kind of emotion when a season ends, but I'm just thankful for these guys. To be in the Sweet 16 our second year at Ole Miss, it's the players, especially these two guys to my left that endured the coaching change and stuck with us and decided to come back their last year and play for us.

"Just thankful, you know. From a coaching standpoint, you don't want to get beat your last game of the season, and I didn't think we did."

Now, a pivotal offseason in Oxford begins with the program looking to reconstruct the roster for next season, but it'll start with some "drama" first.

On Sunday, Maryland head coach Kevin Willard revealed he would be departing the Terrapins program and take his talents to Villanova.

With the head coaching vacancy in Maryland up for grabs, it was Texas A&M's Buzz Williams that took control as the lead candidate. He signed the dotted line this week.

Now, with the Texas A&M Aggies head coaching search in full swing, a familiar face has been linked as a "primary candidate," according to The Field of 68's Jeff Goodman.

Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard will be a name to monitor, Goodman reports.

Ole Miss coach Chris Beard will be one of the primary candidates for the Texas A&M opening, source told @TheFieldOf68.

Will be interesting to see whether Beard would rather stay in Oxford or head to College Station.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 2, 2025

The Rebels' shot-caller is coming off of an impressive 2024-25 campaign in Oxford with the program quickly turning the corner as a contender.

Now, the coaching rumor mill has begun with Beard at the forefront of the conversation surrounding the Texas A&M Aggies vacancy.

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