Rebels Swing Big With Former Texas Coach Chris Beard, But Will It Pan Out?
Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter likes to swing big on characters as coaches. No matter his changing persona since arriving in Oxford, Lane Kiffin still remains one of the biggest names in college football on and off the field.
The same could be said for the new men's basketball coach.
The Rebels have finalized a deal with former Texas coach Chris Beard to replace Kermit Davis. Beard will be introduced to the public and the media for the first time on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at the SJB Pavilion.
The press conference will also mark the first public meeting of Beard since his firing at Texas in response to a domestic violence charge that saw him arrested on Dec. 12, 2022. Since then, all charges against the 50-year-old Beard have been dropped.
Has the public persona surrounding his name changed?
"We are excited to welcome Coach Beard and his daughters, Avery, Ella, and Margo, to the Ole Miss family," Carter said in a school release. "We thoroughly evaluated a number of outstanding candidates, and there is no doubt Coach Beard is one of the top coaches in the nation. After conducting due diligence and speaking to a number of individuals on and off the court, it was evident he is the right person to guide our team to greatness."
From a winning standpoint, Beard's hiring makes sense. The Rebels haven't been to the NCAA Tournament since Davis' first season in 2018. Every year, the program took a step back rather than ahead.
For instance, take the 2021 season following the tournament's cancelation due to COVID-19. Ole Miss finished above .500 nationally and in conference play (10-8). A year later, the Rebels won four games against SEC opponents.
Last season, they won two.
Beard knows how to win. He also knows how to establish a culture. During his time with Texas Tech, Beard took over a roster that finished 13-19 two years prior under Tubby Smith and turned them into a program on the rise. The following season, Tech made it to the Elite Eight.
And the year after that, the Red Raiders made it to the national championship, falling just short of winning the title in Minneapolis to Virginia. During his five seasons in Lubbock, Beard posted a 112–55 record. He also finished with a 55.1 percent win rate against Big 12 programs.
"I can't express how grateful I am to Chancellor (Glenn) Boyce, Keith Carter and the rest of the search committee for their belief in me to lead this program," Beard said in a school release. "I am really looking forward to being an active part of the Oxford community. I know we have one of the best venues in the country in the SJB Pavilion, and we are going to work tirelessly to build a championship-caliber program. I can't wait to connect with our players and recruits and begin this journey together."
When Carter swings, he looks for home runs, not singles. Last season, rumors speculated that Ole Miss baseball coach Mike Bianco was on the hot seat at the midseason marker. Three months later, the Rebels won their first College World Series in program history.
This isn't to say that something ignited a spark internally, but any type of pressure will lead to results. It did on the diamond. Will it on the hardwood, too?
Even after spending time in the Nick Saban rehabilitation clinic — plus three seasons at Florida Atlantic — the critics came for Kiffin. There was skepticism that a man who once fled the SEC for sunny California would pull the same stunt once the best offer came to town.
Three years, 23 wins and a Sugar Bowl appearance later, Kiffin seems engulfed in the Hotty Toddy culture. Carter, meanwhile, looks like a genius for bringing him in.
Still, Kiffin never once was arrested for domestic violence charges. Even if Beard has been cleared of all accusations, there's still a negative connotation connected with his persona.
Fans on The Grove might not be too keen on Beard's arrival. They won't care at the end of the day if Ole Miss starts winning. And remember, while the public might never know what happened behind closed doors, Randi Trew, Beard's fiancée, never pressed charges.
The result? A hot candidate with a proven track record was made available for Carter's taking. And in the public court of law, without a victim willing to press charges, it's a "he said, she said" case.
Carter swung big with Kiffin, and it paid dividends. He swung even bigger with Beard to finally bring relevance to a program he holds near and dear to his heart. But with every big swing comes the chance for a strikeout.
Time will tell what Beard's hiring will become—an out-of-the-park moonshot or a call that ends the game.
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