Maryland to hire Texas A&M’s Buzz Williams as men’s basketball coach, source says

Two days after being dumped by Kevin Willard for Villanova, Maryland mens basketball has moved swiftly to fill its head coaching vacancy and will hire Texas A&Ms Buzz Williams, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation.

An announcement is expected Tuesday afternoon.The 52-year-old Williams has been head coach at New Orleans, Marquette, and Virginia Tech but spent the past six years with the Aggies.

Under his direction, the Southeastern Conference program has gone 120-73 overall and 56-44 in the league, with four consecutive seasons of 21 wins or more.Williams recently guided Texas A&M to a 23-11 record and an 11-7 mark in the SEC and its third straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, which had last been done for a six-year stretch from 2006 to 2011.

As a No.

4 seed, the team disposed of No.

13 Yale, 80-71, in the first round before falling to No.

5 seed Michigan, 91-79, in the second round.George Mason coach Tony Skinn, American University coach Duane Simpkins and Maryland assistant David Cox also interviewed for the opening, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told The Baltimore Sun.

The search was led by University of Maryland President Darryll J.

Pines, interim athletic director Colleen Sorem and deputy athletic director/chief strategy officer Brian Ullmann, the source said.Williams was named SEC Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2023.

His formal name is Brent, and he earned the Buzz nickname for his energetic personality while working as a student assistant at Navarro College.Before arriving at College Station to coach the Aggies, Williams spent five years at Virginia Tech.

During that time, the Hokies went 100-69 overall and 44-46 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, enjoyed four consecutive seasons of at least 20 victories and earned three straight at-large berths to the NCAA Tournament, capping that run by advancing to the Sweet 16 in 2019.Williams previously helmed Marquette for six years, amassing a 139-69 overall record and a 69-39 mark in the Big East, racking up 22 wins or more in its first five seasons and going to the NCAA Tournament in each of those years.The Golden Eagles marched to the Sweet 16 in 2011 and 2012 and then advanced to Williams first Elite Eight in 2013 before losing to Syracuse.

But the following season, the team slid to 17-15 overall and 9-9 in the conference and was left out of the NCAA postseason.

Williams has not made it back to the Elite Eight and has only returned to the Sweet 16 once since 2013.In his lone year at New Orleans, Williams guided the Privateers to a 14-17 overall record and a 9-9 mark in the Sun Belt Conference.Williams figures to inherit a roster depleted by lack of eligibility, early entry into the NBA and the transfer portal.

Senior power forward Julian Reese, a Randallstown native and St.

Frances graduate, and graduate student small forward Selton Miguel are two starters who have exhausted their eligibility, and fifth-year senior small forward Jordan Geronimo and fifth-year point guard Jahari Long also appear to have no eligibility remaining.Freshman center Derik Queen, the Baltimore wunderkind, is expected to enter the 2025 NBA draft, where he is projected by some publications as a lottery pick.

And three players who were recruited through the transfer portal by Willard junior point guard JaKobi Gillespie, shooting guard Rodney Rice and junior power forward Tafara Gapare have entered the transfer portal and could elect to follow him to the Wildcats.Williams reportedly earned $4.6 million annually at Texas A&M.

That is more than the $4.08 million given to Willard last year, which made him the states second highest-paid employee affiliated with the University of Maryland or University System of Maryland.

Only football coach Mike Locksleys total earnings of $6 million exceeded Willards amount.Related ArticlesFormer Maryland basketball players incensed, dont want mercenary coaches5 Maryland basketball players enter transfer portal, top recruit decommits after Kevin Willards departureREADER POLL: Who should be Marylands next mens basketball coach?Kevin Willard is gone.

The lessons of his departure should endure.

| ANALYSISMaryland needs a mens basketball coach.

Heres who might win the job.On Sunday, Willard was named coach at Villanova.

In three seasons, he compiled a 65-39 overall record and a 32-28 mark in the Big Ten at Maryland.Willard became the first coach in program history to guide the school to the NCAA Tournament in his debut in which the team lost to Alabama, 73-51, in the second round in 2023 and the first to accumulate 20 victories in his first season.

But a year later, the program stumbled to a 16-17 record and a 7-13 mark in the league and exited the Big Ten Tournament in the second round.

The 17 losses matched those accrued by the 2021-22 squad helmed by Mark Turgeon and then Danny Manning that precipitated the pursuit of Willard from Seton Hall.This past season, the 49-year-old Willard led the Terps to a 27-9 record, exceeding the most wins he had enjoyed in a single season in his career (25-9 in 2015-16).

The 27 victories were the most by the school since 2014-15 when that squad racked up a 28-7 record before losing to West Virginia, 69-59, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.Maryland also went 14-6 in the Big Ten, which was another career best for Willard.

His 2019-20 Pirates team won 13 games in Big East play.The 14 conference wins were tied for the second-highest total in school history.

The 2014-15 team went 14-4 in the Big Ten, and the 2019-20 squad enjoyed a 14-6 mark in the conference.

All three teams trailed the standard set by the 2001-02 team that forged a 15-1 record in the Atlantic Coast Conference en route to claiming the programs first and only national championship.Willards departure wrapped up a tumultuous two-week span during which the university and coach Kevin Willard began working on a contract extension on March 16, Willard announcing the departure of athletic director Damon Evans to SMU while fighting for fundamental changes to the schools name, image and likeness revenue-sharing plan on March 20, Willard telling an area radio show that, As of right now, Im staying, on Tuesday, sidestepping questions about his future on Wednesday, and telling media after Thursday nights 87-71 setback to Florida in the Sweet 16 that he loved Maryland but had to take everything into consideration.This article will be updated.

Have a news tip? Contact Edward Lee at [email protected], 410-332-6200 and x.com/EdwardLeeSun..

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