Chris Beard Officially Named Ole Miss Basketball Coach
Ole Miss has officially named Chris Beard as its next head basketball coach, according to a press release from the university.
“We are excited to welcome Coach Beard and his daughters, Avery, Ella and Margo, to the Ole Miss family,” Carter said. “We thoroughly evaluated a number of outstanding candidates, and there is no doubt Coach Beard is one of the top coaches in the nation. After conducting due diligence and speaking to a number of individuals on and off the court, it was evident he is the right person to guide our team to greatness.
“At each stop in his career, Coach Beard has proven to be a program builder and a dynamic leader whose teams exhibit relentless effort. He is a tireless recruiter and develops talent to reach their greatest potential. He has coached at multiple levels of college basketball and has competed for championships at every school. Simply put, Coach Beard is a winner, and Ole Miss Basketball’s best years are ahead of us under his leadership.”
Beard was fired from Texas back in January after domestic violence charges were filed against him for an incident that occurred with his fiance on December 12, 2022.
However, those charges were dropped in February after the Travis County District Attorney’s office determined that the felony offense could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
“I am honored to be joining the Ole Miss family and excited to get started at this great university,” Beard said. “I can’t express how grateful I am to Chancellor Boyce, Keith Carter and the rest of the search committee for their belief in me to lead this program. I am really looking forward to being an active part of the Oxford community. I know we have one of the best venues in the country in the SJB Pavilion, and we are going to work tirelessly to build a championship-caliber program. I can’t wait to connect with our players and recruits and begin this journey together. Hotty Toddy!”
Beard will replace Kermit Davis, who was fired last month after back-to-back 13th-place finishes in the SEC and a 10-18 record in 2023.
In eight seasons as a head coach over three programs, Beard has a career record of 244-171, and in the seven seasons that he completed, he led his team to five NCAA Tournament appearances, including a final four and national championship appearance with Texas Tech.
Beard’s former team, the Texas Longhorns, has gone on without him this season to win the Big 12 basketball tournament and earn a No. 2 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
