Amidst BYU Coaching Search, Mark Madsen Expresses Commitment to Cal

You can take Mark Madsen off the list of coaching candidates for BYU

Feb 7, 2024; Berkeley, California, USA; California Golden Bears head coach Mark Madsen reacts during / Robert Edwards-USA TODAY Sports

Just hours after BYU head coach Mark Pope left BYU to become the next head coach at Kentucky, potential replacement Mark Madsen removed himself from consideration for the BYU job. Madsen, who was viewed as a top candidate to replace Pope, just wrapped up his first year as Cal's head coach. On Friday morning, Madsen released a statement reaffirming his commitment to Cal.

" We love Cal and the Bay Area," Madsen said in a post on X. " We are excited and fully committed for the future here at Cal...To Cal Bear alums----Let's continue to build more NIL opportunities across each and every sport at Cal."

On behalf of myself and Hannah, we want to thank every single member of the Cal community for your unconditional love and support this year. We have felt welcomed and embraced. Gratitude would be an understatement. We love Cal and the Bay Area. We are excited and fully…

— Mark Madsen (@madsen_mark) April 12, 2024

Madsen would have been a good hire for BYU - he was the only candidate with head coaching experience in a P6 league. He is proven and getting a proven head coach is not something BYU can typically afford. Every major coaching hire in BYU history has come from either the assistant coaching ranks or the head coach ranks at a lower level. Mark Pope, for example, was a head coach that made the move from UVU to BYU.

On the bright side, BYU can quickly move on to the next candidates. BYU needs to move quickly, and Madsen's announcement will help BYU move quickly.

After Madsen, Utah assistant coach Chris Burgess and UNLV assistant coach Barrett Peery are probably the next most likely candidates. Burgess has connections to BYU as a former assistant coach and he recruited a handful of players that are currently at BYU.

Stay tuned for more updates on the BYU basketball coaching search.