UVA Basketball Head Coaching Candidates: Is It Ron Sanchez's Job to Lose?

William Smythe | Oct 20, 2024

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

In shocking news to the University of Virginia and the nation’s college basketball landscape, Coach Tony Bennett has decided to retire. The ‘Hoos’ all-time winningest coach captured six regular-season ACC titles, two ACC Championships, and the icing on the cake — a National Championship win in 2019. Simply put, Virginia basketball will not be the same without Bennett at the helm. A surprise time for a resignation, nonetheless, holds weight when we consider what Bennett is attempting to do here: give former associate head coach and newly-announced interim Ron Sanchez a year to prove to Virginia’s athletic department that he deserves a shot at the full-time gig in Charlottesville.

Even if Sanchez does shine in his first season, it’s not unlikely that Athletics Director Carla Williams will conduct a national search for Bennett’s long-term replacement. We’re still grappling with the news that Virginia will be bereft of its greatest athletics leader arguably in the history of the school, but Sanchez (or one of those listed below) will hope to keep the ‘Hoos firmly in ACC and national contention.

Look, in an ideal world, I’d want Virginia to land Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger, Florida’s Todd Golden, or Providence’s Kim English, all three program builders. However, here’s a more practical list of some possible coaching candidates to fill the UVA men's basketball head coaching job following this season.

1. Interim Head Coach Ron Sanchez

The timing of Bennett’s decision means that he is fully invested in a Sanchez-led program. If he had decided to retire early this offseason, Virginia would surely have lost several returners to the portal and would’ve struggled to bring in high-quality talent without Bennett in the fold. Now, with only two weeks until the season begins, the ‘Hoos’ unit will hopefully remain intact unless players do opt to transfer within the 30-day period, granted to those who experience a coaching change. This seemed to be the only way that Bennett could ensure his successor had a chance to fight for the full-time position at Virginia, even if a national search is inevitable.

A Bennett disciple, Sanchez has followed Virginia’s former head coach from Washington State to Charlottesville, having left from 2018-23 to lead UNC-Charlotte. Prior to the start of last season, Sanchez returned to Bennett’s staff to resume his old position as associate head coach. His Charlotte teams showed promise, yet the opportunity to lead the Cavaliers (or at least to put himself in a position to succeed Bennett) seemingly called Sanchez back to a program which he knows inside and out. Either fellow associate head coach Jason Williford or Sanchez would’ve been no-brainer interim hires, but it'll be the Sanchez show for at least this season.

In recent years, interims across power conferences have proven themselves and earned a full-time gig, including Texas’ Rodney Terry and Ohio State’s Jake Diebler. Arguably the most pertinent example  is West Virginia’s Josh Eilert, who took over in an interim capacity for the long-tenured Bob Huggins in mid-June of 2023. 

Why Did Tony Bennett Retire? UVA Basketball Coach Explains Decision

Not to be Johnny Raincloud here, but Eilert did not earn a full-time position. However — and this is a big however — West Virginia suffered immensely from a thin roster and would’ve made even UConn’s Dan Hurley work for a 15+ win season. 

Hopefully, Sanchez can lead this unit to a successful campaign. I understand that the deck is stacked against him, and, barring any last-minute transfers, he will nonetheless carry a burden that no one would hope to carry two weeks before a season begins — replacing Tony Bennett.

2. VCU Head Coach Ryan Odom

Brace yourselves. Yes, this is the same Ryan Odom who led UMBC to its stunning victory over Virginia in 2018. A star in the mid-major coaching world, Odom, the son of former Virginia assistant and Wake Forest head Dave Odom, has jumped from UMBC to Utah State to VCU in the span of four years, holding a 173-110 record throughout his coaching career. His current roster looks poised to finish in the top-three of the Atlantic 10 this upcoming season, as well, and we know how VCU has established itself as a major coaching stepping stone — Shaka Smart to Texas, Will Wade to LSU, and Mike Rhoades, most recently, to Penn State.

Odom also has strong ties to the commonwealth, having graduated from nearby Hampden-Sydney College, and has repeatedly garnered respect from Bennett and those in coaching circles around the area. This move would make a lot of sense, as Odom lived near University Hall while his father helped coach the Ralph Sampson-led Virginia teams of the early 1980s. He’s a young candidate connected to the school, the state, and Bennett himself. 

Here’s what he said about Bennett, whom he has known for a decade, following Virginia’s 2019 National Championship win: “I’ve had a lot of respect for (Bennett) over the years and how he runs his program,” said Odom. “He’s kind of what college basketball is all about.” Ironic that someone who epitomizes college basketball has been forced out by how unrecognizable it has become.

Here’s a catch for Odom, though: his buyout is $10,000,000.

3. Marquette Head Coach Shaka Smart

Lo and behold, another VCU product! The poster boy of all ex-Rams, Smart has enjoyed a successful career coaching in the power conferences after leading VCU to a Cinderella run in 2011. Now with Marquette, he has notched back-to-back two-seeds in the NCAA Tournament and has carved out his own style within the turnover-heavy transfer portal era. Smart’s last three rosters consisted of zero transfers. The results are clear, as Marquette’s 2022-23 team burst onto the scene by securing the Big East regular season title as well as the conference tournament championship.

Smart’s defensive-oriented approach, unique approach to an ever-changing landscape (which evidently took its toll on Bennett), and ties to the state make him a compelling contender for a long-term job. It’s a stretch, though, to believe he’ll walk away from a program that has achieved more in recent years than Virginia within a basketball-crazy conference. 

The would-be buyout for a coach like Smart isn’t cheap, however, and he signed an extension to stay at Marquette until 2029-30. Odds are he opts to keep building his own program in Milwaukee.

4. Liberty Head Coach Ritchie McKay

A former assistant under Bennett, McKay has paved his own path at Liberty since 2015. He has done nothing but win in his time in Lynchburg, having posted seven 20+ win seasons since he returned to coach the Flames after leaving for Virginia in 2009. Moreover, McKay is evidently familiar with Bennett’s systems (but has departed from them at Liberty) and knows the University and its expectations. It all depends on whether Carla and company want to shift to a new style of play; but, in any case, McKay ought to gain consideration for his mid-major success outside of Bennett’s shadow. 

I do worry about McKay’s age as a negative factor for his candidacy - he'll turn 60 next April. Although I would love Virginia to give a look at San Diego State’s Brian Dutcher, Saint Mary’s Randy Bennett, and McKay, the athletic department might pivot for a younger face to lead the program in the foreseeable future. 

5. Mid-Major Guy Who Makes A Name for Himself in 2024-25

With coaching buyouts reaching astronomical levels across power conferences, Virginia might have to dip into the mid-major coaching carousel if the aforementioned options don’t pan out. Last year, multiple made the leap from smaller conferences to the P5 world; it’s difficult to know at this moment who would appear to be ready to make that jump, but there are a few who have built impressively long resumes albeit in weaker conferences. The hot new mid-major hire spawns after every season’s completion, so we’ll know who’s in the mix come April.

A couple of candidates to monitor, in addition, are as follows: Princeton’s Mitch Henderson, Loyola-Chicago’s Drew Valentine, and Chris Mooney — the current head of the Richmond Spiders and a two-time Atlantic-10 champion.

With Sanchez’s announcement, let’s hope that the interim head coach of the ‘Hoos can put the nation on watch in 2024-25. The “heir apparent” for Bennett has a year to prove he can be the guy.

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