Mark Byington left JMU for Vanderbilt, it was reported Monday. That leaves JMU’s Jeff Bourne in need of a new men’s head basketball coach.
Given Bourne’s recent track record of hiring, we’d expect him to favor current head coaches for the role. Let’s take a look at candidates who fit that mold.
Home-run hires
We nailed Bob Chesney as a “home-run hire” in our initial JMU football coaching candidates article. Will JMU take another big swing at a rising coaching talent for men’s hoops?
Bucky McMillan, Samford - McMillan will be a Power Five head coach soon. Could he hop to another mid-major program first? A former high school head coach, McMillan has led Samford to three consecutive 20-win seasons, including 29 wins this year.
Samford nearly upset Kansas in the first round of the tournament, and McMillan’s fast-paced offense would surely keep JMU fans entertained. He fits the Chesney mold of an up-and-coming coaching star, but would he want to leave Samford for another mid-major? That’s debatable.
Matt Langel, Colgate - Langel has led Colgate to five NCAA Tournament appearances in the last six seasons, and it was only COVID that kept the team out of the Big Dance in 2020. He knows how to win at a mid-major program, with Colgate dominating the Patriot League in recent years. The Sun Belt is a conference that cares more about athletics than the Patriot League, so JMU could make sense to Langel as a possible stepping stone to a Power Five gig.
Russell Turner, UC Irvine - A former Golden State Warriors assistant, Turner has been the head coach at UC Irvine for over a decade. He’s won big there, making three NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of NITs. They’ve finished inside the KenPom top 150 in 12 consecutive seasons, including sitting at No. 80 in 2023-24.
He’s been on the West Coast for decades now, but he’s a Roanoke native. Might he consider returning to Virginia?
Bob Richey, Furman - The current head coach at Furman, Richey is 156-71 in seven seasons there. He’s just 41 years old, and he led the Paladins to an NCAA Tournament win over UVA in 2023. Furman was just 17-16 this season, but he’s a quality coach with a lot of winning experience at the mid-major level. He may also prefer to stay at Furman and ultimately leverage that success into a Power Conference gig.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: / @jmusportsnews
CHECK OUT OUR HOME ON THE WEB: jmusportsnews.com/
FOLLOW US ON:
Facebook - / jmusportsnews
Instagram - / jmusportsnews
Twitter - / jmusportsnews
#jamesmadison #JMU #marchmadness #basketball #collegebasketball #NCAA #ncaabasketball #ncaatournament #coaching #Samford #Colgate #Furman