Dick Vitale 'All In' On Texas Naming Rodney Terry Head Coach
Rodney Terry has done more than enough for Texas to remove the interim tag and name him the Longhorns' permanent head coach.
Dick Vitale would seem to agree.
During a pre-game interview prior to the No. 8 Longhorns' matchup against No. 9 Baylor, Vitale met with Terry to discuss the overall game plan. Before asking questions, the longtime ESPN commentator stated that Terry has proven his worth on the Forty Acres and should be the front-runner to replace Chris Beard following the 2023 season.
"You've done a great job since taking over," Vitalte told Terry. "I hope they get rid of the interim tag and make you full-time coach."
Terry, 54, replaced Beard in mid-December following an arrest on a felony domestic violence charge. According to the police report, Beard, 49, was accused of "assault of a family/household member, impede breath circulation," or strangulation against his fiancee.
Beard was fired on January 5 following a further investigation. Since the firing, all charges have been dropped against Beard after the fiancee declined to cooperate with the prosecution.
Terry, who previously served as head coach at Fresno State (2011-18) and UTEP (2018-21), could be the front-runner for the position following the Longhorns' run in conference play. Texas (22-6, 11-4 Big 12) has won five of its last seven games, including a pair of ranked victories over then-No.7 Kansas State and No. 23 Iowa State.
In 10 seasons as a head coach, Terry has posted a 178–161 overall record. He led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament in 2016. Terry also helped the Miners finish with their first winning record since 2016 during the 2019-20 campaign.
Since being named interim coach, the Longhorns have gone 15-5. Earlier this month, Texas officials more than doubled Terry's salary to $1.2 million after leading the program to a No. 5 ranking in the Associated Press poll.
"He's doing the duties of a head coach, and we chose to adjust his salary as he leads our program the rest of the year," Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said on February 9.
Multiple Texas players have given their support for Terry to be named the full-time coach, including leading rebounder Timmy Allen. As a program, Texas leads the Big 12 in points per game (79.4), field goal percentage (47.6 percent), and ranks second in free-throw percentage (74.4 percent).
"If there's one man I'm glad is coaching me, it's RT," Allen said during media availability this past week.
The Longhorns will travel to Forth Worth Tuesday to take on No. 24 TCU. Texas will return to Austin next Saturday for its regular-season finale against No. 3 Kansas. The Longhorns lost in Lawerence earlier this month to the Jayhawks, 88-80.
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