After Shaka Smart left Austin for the Marquette job, Texas chose to hire former Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard.
It was a move that Red Raiders were confident would never come to fruition. However, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte was able to work his magic to bring Beard home to his alma mater.
Even with one of the top college basketball coaches in the country, Texas was expected to go through a rebuilding year as many of the current players on the roster have uncertain futures.
In Beard’s first few weeks on the Forty Acres, he was able to confirm the returns of Andrew Jones, Jase Febres and Brock Cunningham. On top of that, he has been extremely successful in the transfer portal and recruiting by landing commitments from Timmy Allen, Christian Bishop, Devin Askew and Jaylon Tyson.
If that doesn’t fire you up for the hiring of Beard, the video that Texas’ social media department released on Monday certainly will. The nearly nine-minute clip touches on Beard’s past, his coaching style, why he chose to take the job in Austin and his vision for the program.
Get to know @CoachBeard__UT. đ¤
đ˝ď¸ courtesy @LonghornNetwork. pic.twitter.com/uT8C4e3nW4
— Texas Men's Basketball (@TexasMBB) April 19, 2021
“I want to coach at the highest level, I want to win national championships,” Beard stated. “Walking through the Texas Hall of Fame, seeing all those trophies and Hall of Fame coaches and statues — I want that.”