Here’s a few guys to keep an eye on as Liberty looks for their next men’s basketball head coach.
Jason Allison
Allison is a Liberty alum (’98) and coached in the Big South for nearly a decade at VMI. He is currently in his 1st season at Appalachian State.
RJay Barsh
Barsh is in his 3rd season as the head coach of Southeastern. He helped lead Southeastern to not only their first NAIA National Tournament appearance but to the final four in his 2nd season.
LaVall Jordan
Jordan is in his 5th season as an assistant at Michigan, where he has served alongside former Liberty head coach Jeff Meyer. He’s also spent time as an assistant at Iowa and Butler. He was a finalist for Butler’s head coaching position in 2013.
Bobby Lutz
Lutz is currently the Associate Head Coach at NC State where he has been since 2011. He made his name as the head coach at Charlotte from 1998-2010. He amassed a record of 218-158 and made 5 appearances in the NCAA Tournament in his time at Charlotte.
Ritchie McKay
We all know McKay as he was Liberty’s head coach prior to Layer. McKay has spent the past 6 seasons as the top assistant on Virginia’s staff under Tony Bennett.
Matt McMahon
McMahon is currently in his 4th season as an assistant at Murray State under head coach Steve Prohm. Prior to his time at Murray State, McMahon spent one season at UNC-Wilmington and 10 seasons at Appalachian State. He is an App State alum.
Jeff Meyer
Another familiar name, Meyer is the Flames’ all-time winningest coach having been Liberty’s head coach from 1981-1997. He is currently an assistant at Michigan where he has been since 2008.
LeVelle Moton
Moton is currently in his 5th season as head coach at his alma mater, North Carolina Central. He led them to the NCAA Tournament following a 28-6 record in 2014.
Eddie Payne
Payne has been the head coach at USC Upstate since 2002. His previous stops include head coaching stints at East Carolina, Oregon State, and Greensboro College. He’s also spent time as an assistant at Clemson and South Carolina.
Barclay Radebaugh
Radebaugh is in his 10th season as head coach at Charleston Southern. He’s also served as an assistant at East Tennessee State, Wofford, Furman, South Carolina, Winthrop, and Miami (FL).
Kevin Sutton
Sutton is currently the assistant coach at Georgetown. He’s also spent time as an assistant at George Washington, James Madison, and Old Dominion. He has extensive high school coaching experience and has coached USA Basketball on three different occasions.
Mike Young
Young is in his 13th season as head coach and 26th season overall at Wofford. He has led the Terriers to 3 NCAA Tournament appearances in the past 5 years.
Also, keep an eye on coaches who are fired by Power Conference schools over the next couple of weeks. That is how Barber came across Ritchie McKay and Turner Gill. Guys like Oliver Purnell (DePaul) and Brian Gregory (Georgia Tech), who could become available will be likely targets.
I think Bobby Lutz is a great candidate for being the next coach of the Flames’ basketball team. He has a great track record and I believe that he will strengthen our team.
Really!!! Do you think Richy Mckay would come back to Liberty after the way Jeff Barber rewarded him after his great season and recruiting Seth Curry. Barber should have given McKay at least a contract extention. Some of these names are at big D1 Programs. It would take big money to get them unless they are in the same situation as Layer. Im not sure you are in the know. I make a prediction the none of your coaching names become the next Liberty Coach. I also think Liberty needs a new AD too!!!
Where do I begin in addressing your pile of misinformation Mark? Lets start with McKay. Ritchie still had 3 years left on his contract when he left. Extensions are usually given prior to the start of the last contract year, but even if Barber had been inclined to give one early based on one winning season, it would not have come til sometime in late March or Early April. By then both Curry and McKay were gone. Ritchie\’s decision to leave had NOTHING to do with dissatisfaction with his contract or with JB. It was all about an opportunity to coach with his best friend Tony Bennett.
The coaches on that list who are at high major programs all have something in common. Their job title is ASSISTANT coach. The job opening in question here is for the HEAD coaching position at LU. Assistants from big-time programs leave all the time to be HC for mid-major schools. As far as money is concerned, I highly doubt any of those guys are currently making as much as Layer did, let alone what we might offer them to be our next HC if we believe They are the right guy. News flash Mark. It\’s not the 80s. One thing Liberty is NOT lacking is money, and a willingness to spend it.
You may be correct in saying the eventual choice is not on this list. Time will tell. If I were a betting man I would say the \”smart money\” is on Moton.
Alabama will probably fire Anthony Grant in the near future.
Liberty should go all out and pursue Kenny Payne from Kentucky and push Flames basketball to the top.