WVU Coaching Search: Niko Medved is Worth a Strong Look

On Friday, No. 12 Colorado State was one of the very few teams who pulled an upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, taking down No. 5 Memphis, 79-70.

Head coach Niko Medved's name has been floating around for openings at the Power Four level, namely Minnesota and West Virginia. Medved is a native of Minneapolis, Minnesota, while his wife, Erica, probably wouldn't hate the idea of moving back to her home state of West Virginia. Happy wife, happy life, right?

Medved will have options, and one of them is returning to Colorado State. He agreed to a new five-year deal with the school in April 2024, so staying put offers stability. This season, he will have made $1.7 million and will see a half-a-million dollar increase over the next two years.

Mar 20, 2025; Seattle, WA, USA; Colorado State Rams head coach Niko Medved, and forward Jaylen Crocker-Johnson (8) are pictured during practice at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images | Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images

His buyout is a little tricky. He or the hiring school will owe Colorado State 33% of his remaining salary, but there are two one-year options on the back end of his contract. Assuming those aren't factored in, a school would be looking at a buyout of roughly $1.8 million.

In seven years on the job, Medved has gone 143-84 with three NCAA Tournament appearances and five 20-win seasons. Just last year, he had the Rams ranked as high as No. 13 in the AP Top 25 poll.

According to KenPom, Colorado State ranks 40th in offensive efficiency and 52nd in defensive efficiency. For comparison, WVU was 130th on offense and 14th on defense.

While Jerrod Calhoun, Ben McCollum, and Chester Frazier are the presumed favorites to land the job, don't count Medved out. There's a lot to like there and with better resources, his career could really take off.

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