LOUISVILLE, Ky. – It’s been a little over a week since the University of Louisville opted to fire men’s basketball head coach Kenny Payne.
The Cardinals recently concluded a disastrous 8-24 campaign in what was Payne’s second year at the helm and Payne ended his tenure at his alma mater with a 12-52 overall record.
However, since the Payne was dismissed last Wednesday, there have been a ton of moving parts as it pertains to some of Louisville’s top targets.
For starters, it was reported that Baylor head coach Scott Drew – who was perceived to be the Cardinals No. 1 target – would indeed be staying in Waco with the Bears.
Additionally, Alabama head coach Nate Oats agreed to an extension with the Crimson Tide, and Indiana State head coach Josh Schertz is rumored to be in the mix for the Saint Louis job.
With that being said, who is still in the mix for the job? Below is an updated list of the individuals that are very likely candidates to be the next head coach of the Cardinals. Candidates in alphabetical order by last name.
Whether it was Murray State, Cincinnati or UCLA, Cronin has had success everywhere he has gone.
Not only has he made multiple NCAA Tournament appearances at each stop, but has been named conference Coach of the Year at least once with each program.
Not to mention that he has Louisville ties, serving as an assistant under Rick Pitino for two seasons.
One caveat is that, while Cronin gets to the NCAA Tournament, he hasn’t taken his team far. Out of his 14 trips to the Big Dance, he made it past the first weekend just four times.
While he has done so in every one of his non-COVID seasons with the Bruins, including a Final Four in 2021, UCLA is primed to miss out on the NCAA Tournament entirely this season.
