Coaching Carousel Stock Watch

We’re a few weeks into the season, so it’s time to assess some stocks. Some coaches have put themselves on the map, while others have put themselves in a tough spot. See who’s trending up and down in our first edition of the coaching carousel stock watch.

Trending Up

Justin Gray (Western Carolina)

Justin Gray made our SoCon potential movers list this off-season and he has proven himself well worth the distinction. The Catamounts are 4-0 with impressive road wins over Notre Dame and Middle Tennessee. The third-year head coach and Wake Forest alum is a rising star in the business. After 11 wins his first season, he led WCU to 18 wins in year two. With the Southern Conference a little more wide open than previously thought, Gray has an opportunity to win the league in just his third campaign. Charlotte athletic director Mike Hill should take a long look at what’s going on in Cullowhee this season.

David Ragland (Evansville)

Evansville won five games last year. They’re 6-0 so far this season, matching the school’s best start since 1964. David Ragland has already worked miracles in year two with the Purple Aces. He completely flipped the roster, finding talent at every level. His best player is NAIA Huntington transfer Ben Humrichous. Humrichous just dropped 27 points on SEMO and leads the team in points per game. The outside-the-box recruiting has led to a productive rotation of nine guys who average over 14 minutes per game. Ragland is an Evansville native that bounced around as an assistant for 12 seasons before landing his first head coaching gig last year. He’s probably at least a year away from getting plucked, but his stock is soaring just three weeks into the season.

Mark Byington (James Madison)

Not many teams have had a better start to the season than James Madison. The Dukes are 6-0 and could very well crack the top-20 in tomorrow’s AP Poll. JMU head coach Mark Byington is 6-0 to start a season for the first time in his career. He’s increased his win total every year in Harrisonburg and this year’s squad looks good enough to give him his first ever NCAA tournament appearance. Byington briefly flirted with the Charlotte job over the summer, but like many others, decided the timing wasn’t right to make a move. If the Dukes continue their winning ways, Byington could get some better opportunities this spring.

Niko Medved (Colorado State)

Niko Medved is already a proven commodity at the mid-major level, but his stock cooled after an injury-plagued season last year. This year? The Rams are 6-0, most recently dominating ninth-ranked Creighton on a neutral floor in Kansas City. We’ve long speculated Medved would be a prime candidate at his alma mater, Minnesota, should the job open. We still hold that belief, but wouldn’t be surprised if other schools tried to swoop in and get him first. Medved is 98-64 in now his sixth season in Fort Collins. He’s already made the NCAA tournament and has a squad built to earn an at-large bid this year. Medved will be a name to watch as the carousel turns this spring.

Rashon Burno (Northern Illinois)

Northern Illinois is 5-1, off to their best start since 2015. Rashon Burno inherited a program that won three games and led them to nine victories in year one. In year two, he improved to 13-19 with a 9-9 record in MAC play. This season, the Huskies have made the “third year jump” and look like a team poised to compete for a MAC title. Burno’s overall record is 27-41, but there is a clear and obvious upward trajectory at a place that hasn’t made the NCAA tournament since 1996. Burno is a DePaul alum and should at least get a phone call from his alma mater when that job opens. He’s probably a year away from making a move, but his high major experience and ability to build his own program will make him a viable candidate for many jobs in the near future.

Trending Down

Jerod Haase (Stanford)

Another year with a talented roster, another year with underwhelming results. Stanford held onto Jerod Haase last spring because of this year’s potential and the results haven’t inspired any confidence so far. The Cardinal are 3-4, with all three wins against opponents outside the top 200 in KenPom. The most recent loss, a 22-point drubbing by Northern Iowa, capped off an 0-3 weekend at the Battle 4 Atlantis, where Haase had an opportunity to pick up some resume-building wins. The PAC12 as a whole is down this season, so a middle of the pack finish likely won’t lead to a NCAA tournament berth. Haase is in trouble if things don’t turn around quick in Palo Alto.

Mike Boynton (Oklahoma State)

Oklahoma State’s season couldn’t have started any worse. The Cowboys lost at home to Abilene Christian on opening night and then dropped two of their next three to St. Bonaventure and Notre Dame. Mike Boynton is in year seven in Stillwater, with only one NCAA tournament appearance to show for it. That appearance came with No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham on the roster and he hasn’t been able to reel in that level of talent since. Boynton’s buyout is somewhere in the neighborhood of $7M, which isn’t prohibitive enough to give him job security. There’s a long, proud history of success at Gallagher-Iba Arena and they could be clamoring for a new coach by year’s end if Boynton can’t right the ship.

Drew Valentine (Loyola Chicago)

The Drew Valentine era started with a bang, but the new shine has worn off quickly in Chicago. After a 10-win season in year two, many thought Loyola would bounce back with a new haul of transfers and another year of development. The early returns have not been great. The Ramblers are 3-3, with one of the losses coming to nearby Illinois Chicago. Valentine is 1-9 vs. the KenPom Top-100 the last two seasons and this year’s best win is a narrow victory over a middling Boston College squad. The remainder of the non-conference schedule doesn’t feature anyone north of 130 in KenPom, so the Ramblers should be able to rack up some wins before A10 play. Anything less than 5-2 in those games should sound the alarms for Loyola fans.

Jerry Stackhouse (Vanderbilt)

Vanderbilt gets the benefit of the doubt for losing their first game of the year to Presbyterian without a handful of their starters, but things haven’t gotten much better since Tyrin Lawrence and Ven-Allen Lubin returned to the lineup. The Commodores fell to 3-3 after consecutive losses to NC State and Arizona State in Las Vegas this week. To give Vandy’s woes some perspective, as of writing they are currently ranked one spot below Louisville in KenPom. Jerry Stackhouse is in year five and while he had his best season last year, he still hasn’t made the NCAA tournament. Every spring there seems to be a new rumor about him bolting for the NBA and I’m not sure Vandy fans would exactly beg him to stay if he decided to go that route.

Tony Stubblefield (DePaul)

A wise man once told me nothing good ever happens to DePaul and this year is no different. The Blue Demons are 1-5, with losses to Purdue Fort Wayne, Long Beach State and Northern Illinois. They’re only favored in one Big East game this season (home vs. Georgetown) and there aren’t many winnable games left on the schedule. The Tony Stubblefield experiment continues to get worse and I’m afraid there isn’t much to suggest a turnaround is coming. At the time, the hire was praised and you’d be hard-pressed to find someone that said he was the wrong choice. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out and this is one of those times. DePaul needs to find a proven winner with head coaching experience for their next hire.

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