Texas ‘Doesn’t Want to’ Give Rodney Terry Full-Time Job: Report
Texas’ interim head basketball coach Rodney Terry took over for Chris Beard on December 12, with a 7-1 record and the nation’s No. 7 ranking as his starting point.
Now, three months later, Terry has led the Longhorns to a 26-8 record, a Big 12 tournament championship, and a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That alone should garner some recognition from his boss, Chris Del Conte, right?
Not according to Jeff Godman of The Field of 68. Goodman says that Terry will need to take the Longhorns deep into the tournament this month if he hopes to have the interim tag removed from his title.
“They’re going to swing for some of the big boys, if they don’t hire Rodney Terry,” Jeff Goodman of The Field of 68 said. “If Rodney Terry goes deep, they’re going to have to give it to Rodney Terry. They don’t want to. Chris Del Conte doesn’t want to ultimately.
“But he may have no choice if Rodney Terry goes deep, second weekend or beyond. If not, they’re going to try to swing for the fences.”
Texas draws Colgate in the opening round and a win there would send the Longhorns to the Round of 32 with a potential matchup with Texas A&M looming. If Terry can lead the Longhorns to the Sweet 16, and knock off UT’s in-state rival in the process, Del Conte might not have a choice but to make him the full-time guy in Austin.
We will have to wait and see how things unfold over the next 10 days, but the opportunity is there for Terry, as long as his team keeps on winning.
