Arkansas Basketball Head Coach Hot Board 4.0

Portal season has turned into plane tracking season for Arkansas basketball as head coach Eric Musselman has bolted Fayetteville for USC.

A national search began immediately following the news that the Muss Bus was heading to SoCal, and U of A athletic director Hunter Yurachek will need to move quickly with a thin roster intact and the transfer portal not slowing down for anyone.

Arkansas missed on its first two targets, although there have been some rumblings about a potential circling back to Ole Miss’ Chris Beard.

Yurachek has been in contact with several potential candidates for the position over the weekend. While the consensus vibe around the search has been chaotic, here is where the smoke has blown most of late:

Chris Jans | Mississippi State

• Overall Record: 185-71 (.723) | 8 seasons
• Age: 54
• Coach Resume: Five NCAA Tournament appearances (1-5), four regular season conference titles, three conference tournament titles. At least 21 wins in seven of eight seasons as a head coach.
• Contract Details: $3.2M/yr through 2026-27 season.
• Notes: Jans has won at a high clip everywhere he has been. Arkansas fans will remember his New Mexico State team knocking off UConn and putting a massive scare into the Razorbacks in the NCAAT Round of 32 in 2022. He has since led Mississippi State to back-to-back tournament appearances. It’s of note the AD who hired him at Starkville has since departed for Auburn.
• Update: An initial candidate on the Hot Board at Natty State Sports, it was reported late Saturday night by Bob Holt at the ADG that Jans will have a Zoom interview with Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek on Sunday.

Darrell Walker | Little Rock

• Overall Record: 127-117 (.520)
• Age: 63
• Coach Resume: Won Sun Belt Coach of the Year and the regular season conference title in 2020. Won Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year and league title in 2024. Had NBA head coaching stops with the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards.
• Contract Details:
• Notes: Walker played at Arkansas from 1980-83 and was second-team All-American and co-SWC Player of the Year in his final season. Was a first round draft pick by the New York Knicks. Ten-year NBA playing career. Beloved figure in the state and recruiting footprint.
• Update: The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported late Saturday evening that Walker would be doing a Zoom interview with athletic director Hunter Yurachek on Sunday. While the interview is certainly of note, Walker is likely on the second-tier of candidates for the time being.

Will Wade | McNeese

• Overall Record: 226-100 (.693) | 10 seasons
• Age: 41
• Coach Resume: Six NCAA Tournament appearances (4-5), one Sweet 16, three regular season conference titles, one conference tournament title.
• Contract Details: $700K/5 years | Buyout $1.25M following ’23-24 season and $1M following ’24-25
• Notes: Wade quickly rose up the mid-major ranks at Chattanooga and VCU. In 2017, he landed the head job at LSU, where he made three NCAA Tournament appearances in five seasons. He was terminated in 2022 for NCAA allegations of major violations following an FBI bribery and recruiting probe. One year later, Wade was hired to lead McNeese, which made the NCAA Tournament this season and won 30 games. Wade comes with baggage and a reputation, but is young, knows how to win and is loved by his players.
• Update: Murmurs have been circulating about the possibility of Wade interviewing with Arkansas on Saturday. While those remain unconfirmed as of midday, there is no questioning Wade’s desire to accept the position if offered. The question, mainly, is will Hunter Yurachek and the board be able to look past Wade’s baggage and current sanctions and approve making an offer?

John Calipari | Kentucky

• Overall Record: 855-263 (.765)
• Age: 65
• Coach Resume: National Championship at Kentucky in 2012. Six Final Fours (4 at Kentucky, 1 at Memphis, 1 at UMass), 23 NCAA Tournament appearances, 18 regular season conference titles, 15 league tournament titles.
• Contract Details: $8.5M/yr through 2028-29
• Update: Here is the first real “out of leftfield” candidate to be floated around. There are some dots to be connected by way of Cal and Kentucky looking for a mutual parting of ways and Arkansas being a good job in need of a splash hire. But the likely reality is that even though multiple sources have suggested prominent financial players in the state would be willing to contribute substantially to the cause, Cal is one of the highest-paid coaches in the country making double what Eric Musselman earned in Fayetteville. For now, this feels unlikely to materialize.

Buzz Williams | Texas A&M

• Overall Record: 350-217 (.618) | 17 seasons
• Age: 51
• Coach Resume: 10 NCAA Tournament appearances (11-10), four Sweet 16’s, one Elite Eight, one regular season conference title.
• Contract Details: $4.4M through 2027-28
• Notes: There have been recent rumblings that Williams has grown disgruntled in College Station, which was part of the reason he was initially linked to the Oklahoma State opening. There was some buzz with Williams and Arkansas prior to Musselman’s hiring in 2019.
• Update: The buzz has been picking up with Williams-Arkansas. A Texas A&M source has indicated to Natty State Sports that Williams could be serious about a potential fresh start with a new AD in place at College Station and a fanbase he wants to feel more connected to.

Bucky McMillan | Samford

• Overall Record: 77-41 (.633) | 4 seasons
• Age: 40
• Coach Resume: Led Samford to 29 wins in 2023-24, regular season and conference tournament title out of SoCon and a near upset against Kansas in the NCAA Tournament Round of 64. Three-time SoCon Coach of the Year. Won championships at Mountain Brook High School.
• Contract Details: Salary information unavailable. Signed extension through ’29-30
• Notes: Is it too early for McMillan to make such a steep jump? An argument could be made, but there is no question his high basketball IQ and exciting, up-tempo pace of play — dubbed “Bucky Ball” — would resonate in Fayetteville.
• Update: While it still feels like a bit of a long shot, there is at least some confirmed internal support for Bucky McMillan at Arkansas. With that being said, a hefty commitment would also need to be in place for an experienced recruiting staff and NIL budget if things were to materialize.

Porter Moser | Oklahoma

• Overall Record: 347-287 (.547) | 20 seasons
• Age: 55
• Coach Resume: Two NCAA Tournament appearances (6-2), two Sweet 16’s, one Final Four, three regular season conference titles, two conference tournament titles
• Contract Details: $3.1M/yr through 2027-28 | Buyout $6.5M
• Notes: Moser had an incredible run at Loyola (Chicago) and has been right down the road at Norman with the Sooners for the past few seasons. Had a five-year run, including three as head coach, at Little Rock from ’98-03. Moser to Fayetteville doesn’t feel like a likely outcome, but there are enough connections present to have him on the radar.
• Update: Sources told Natty State Sports prior to Arkansas’ job coming open that it would be a coveted opportunity by Moser, among others. A separate source has indicated Moser’s representation is among those who have expressed interest since Musselman’s departure on Thursday.

Brad Underwood | Illinois

• Overall Record: 252-115 (.687) | 11 seasons
• Age: 60
• Coach Resume: Eight NCAA Tournament appearances in 10 seasons (5-7), four regular season conference titles, five conference tournament titles. Just led Illinois to an Elite Eight.
• Contract Details: $4.5M/yr through 2026-27
• Notes: Underwood has more ties to the region than it appears on the surface. Spent a season as associate head coach at South Carolina, three years in Texas at Stephen F. Austin and one year at Oklahoma State before heading to Champaign. He is coming off his best season yet at Illinois, leading the Illini to the Elite Eight.
• Update: Underwood’s name has popped up a few times in conversations over the past 24 hours. A source close to the Illinois program believes the Arkansas job and SEC would have appeal to Underwood, but he has a hefty contract, strong institutional support and a solid relationship with administration where he is at. Keep an eye out on the potential raise-extension leverage play if the smoke increases.