Texas’ Shaka Smart is in talks with Marquette to become the next Golden Eagles coach, sources told ESPN.
A deal is expected to close soon.
Smart, a native of Wisconsin, was the head coach in Texas for six seasons. The Longhorns went to three NCAA tournaments under Smart, but have yet to win an NCAA tournament with him in charge. They won the Big 12 Conference tournament earlier this month, but were defeated by Abilene Christian, with 14 seed heads, in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Smart has been on the hot seat in Austin for two years, but the pandemic probably saved him after the 2019-20 season. His purchase after this season by Texas would have been about $ 7 million.
Prior to taking over Texas, Smart was the head coach of the VCU, taking the Rams to five consecutive appearances in NCAA tournaments – including a Final Four in 2011.
Smart would replace Steve Wojciechowski, who was fired earlier this month after seven seasons with the Golden Eagles.
Among Texas’s top targets, Texas Tech coach Chris Beard is expected to be. Beard went to Texas and was an assistant student to the Longhorns under Tom Penders. His purchase to go to another Big 12 school drops to $ 4 million on April 1, sources told ESPN.