Eddie Fogler to help Vanderbilt find new coach
An old Vanderbilt basketball coach will help find the new one.
Former Commodores coach Eddie Fogler will serve as the consultant in spearheading the program’s first coaching search since 1999, according to athletics director David Williams.
Fogler’s task is to replace Kevin Stallings, who finished a 17-year run as Vanderbilt’s all-time winningest coach by taking the Pittsburgh job. More than 100 potential applicants already have contacted Williams and Fogler, according to the AD.
Williams said he and Vanderbilt Chancellor Nicholas Zeppos will make the final decision, but Fogler will be the primary headhunter rather than a search firm or search committee.
“(Fogler) understands Vanderbilt. I have been on the phone with Eddie three times today, and he’s already hard at work for us,” Williams said in a press conference Monday. “We will do a search and try to do it in effective time. I never like to put speed ahead of quality.”
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Fogler coached Vanderbilt from 1990-93, posting a record of 81-48. Coincidentally, he remains the only Commodores coach over the past 40 years with a better winning percentage than Stallings.
Fogler guided Vanderbilt to the Sweet Sixteen in 1993 and then took the coaching job at South Carolina. He has been a consultant for basketball coaching searches since 2006. Placing Tom Crean at Indiana is among Fogler’s best consulting successes.
Fogler declined comment about the search. Williams did not address any candidates, but he said, “I have given some names to Eddie, and Eddie has given us some names. … Eddie knows people in the business, and Eddie knows people who know people.”
Potential names on the list include Virginia Commonwealth’s Will Wade (a Nashville native), Monmouth’s King Rice, Harvard’s Tommy Amaker, Yale’s James Jones, Wichita State’s Gregg Marshall, Xavier’s Chris Mack, Virginia Tech’s Buzz Williams, Dayton’s Archie Miller and UNC-Wilmington’s Kevin Keatts.
Some prime candidates could require a big payday. For example, Marshall reportedly makes a base salary of about $3 million per year through 2022 at Wichita State.
Williams said Vanderbilt is “prepared to do what is necessary” financially to get the right coach.
“I know exactly what we pay (coaches), and I know exactly what everybody else pays. I know where we fit,” Williams said. “Fans that believe we don’t pay market (value), keep believing it. It ain’t true.”
Williams said he wants someone with head coaching experience, but not necessarily among the same coaches who are candidates for other available jobs across the country.
“We consider Vanderbilt to be a very special place,” Williams said. “One of the reasons we’re going to use Eddie is that this is a place where you not only think about coaching experience, but you also think about fit. This is not the right place for everybody.”
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Belmont coach Rick Byrd, a close friend of Stallings, shrugged off his potential candidacy for the job.
“You’re crazy to say anything definitive in this world, but I can say this: ‘If I were an AD, I wouldn’t go to a guy that’s getting ready to turn 63 to start a new program regardless of their success,” said Byrd, 62.
On 102.5 The Game Monday, Stallings said he called each Vanderbilt player individually rather than meet as a team over the weekend because much of the squad had left Nashville for Easter. He advised the current Commodores to be patient during the coaching search.
“I told them that change brings about a lot of uncertainty, and that I was certain that Vanderbilt would find a very good coach for them,” Stallings said on 102.5. “(I told them to) be patient and don’t do anything rash — no rash comments or judgments, and just be patient through the process.”
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Stallings said rumors of his firing or retirement were untrue.
“I was fired, retired and negotiating a buyout last week all while I was on vacation with my family,” Stallings said. “None of it was true.”
Williams echoed that sentiment when asked if he planned to bring back Stallings next season before he took the Pittsburgh job. He said, “I have never said anything to the contrary.”
Williams said he granted Pitt permission to speak to Stallings in the middle of last week. Three hours before Pitt announced Stallings’ hiring Sunday, the coach told his longtime AD of his move.
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Williams did not have a list of candidates ready when he learned of Stallings’ departure.
Said Williams: “That’s like asking me, ‘Do I have a list of women I’m going to marry if my wife dies?’ ”
Reach Adam Sparks at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @AdamSparks.
EDDIE FOGLER FILE
Consultant: Established Fogler Consulting in 2006 (FoglerConsulting.com).
At Vanderbilt: 81-48 record from 1989-93; 1990 NIT champion, two NCAA appearances (1993 Sweet Sixteen).
Notable: Fogler won 62.8 percent of his Vanderbilt games as the only Commodores coach with a higher winning percentage than Kevin Stallings (60.1) over the past 40 years.
Coaching stops: North Carolina (1971-86, assistant); Wichita State (1986-89, head coach); Vanderbilt (1989-93, head coach); South Carolina (1993-2001, head coach).
Other: Spent eight years as Fox Sports Network analyst; son Ben Fogler was a golfer at Vanderbilt.