One of West Virginia's Remaining Opponents Has Fired Its Coach

Upcoming Big 12 opponent makes a change mid-season.
Jan 9, 2024; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Kansas State Wildcats head coach Jerome Tang argues a call during the first half against the West Virginia Mountaineers at WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images
Jan 9, 2024; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Kansas State Wildcats head coach Jerome Tang argues a call during the first half against the West Virginia Mountaineers at WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

Here in a couple of weeks, the West Virginia Mountaineers will make the return trip out to Manhattan, looking for the season sweep of the Kansas State Wildcats.

This time around, they won't have head coach Jerome Tang, as the school relieved him of his duties over the weekend amid a six-game losing streak and a 1-10 start to Big 12 play in what was his fourth season on the job.

Tang got out to a red-hot start at the helm, guiding the Wildcats to a 26-10 record and a trip to the Elite Eight. Since then, the program has slowly regressed finishing with records of 19-15, 16-17, and their current mark of 10-15.

Following their 29-point home loss, Tang was visibly upset in his postgame press conference, saying, "This was embarrassing. These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform. There will be very few of them in it next year. I’m embarrassed for the university. I’m embarrassed for our fans, our student section. It is just, ridiculous.”

For their next game (Tang's last) against Houston, he had the players' names removed from their jerseys to make a point about how displeased he was with how things were going. According to multiple reports, Kansas State fired Tang for cause, meaning they won't have to pay the large $18.7 million buyout. Odds are, Tang and his representation will challenge that, and unless something happened behind the scenes that no one is currently aware of, Tang will get his money.

The last matchup vs. K-State

West Virginia's 59-54 victory over the Wildcats was a sloppy one — a game where they turned the ball over 13 times, leading to 18 points in the other direction. Honor Huff got out to a hot start in that one, scoring 12 points in the first half, but cooled off significantly in the final twenty minutes, which allowed K-State to hang around, thanks to P.J. Haggerty dropping 16 points after a scoreless first half.

The Cats are reeling right now, and although they'll have a few games under their belt with the interim coach, it's a game West Virginia must win to keep any NCAA Tournament hopes alive. WVU and K-State will meet on Tuesday, March 3rd, and will be the Mountaineers' final road game of the season.

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Schuyler Callihan
SCHUYLER CALLIHAN

Schuyler Callihan is the publisher of West Virginia On SI and has been a trusted source covering the Mountaineers since 2016. He is the host of Between The Eers, The Walk Thru Game Day Show, and In the Gun Podcast. The Wheeling, WV native moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in 2020 to cover the Charlotte Hornets and Carolina Panthers.

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