Vanderbilt is hiring former Texas head coach Rodney Terry as an assistant coach. On3’s Joe Tipton reported the news.
Terry returns to the sidelines after taking a year off, following his firing at Texas. This past season, the Angleton, Tex., native served as an ESPN analyst and a broadcaster on the SEC Network. He also served as a scout for the New Orleans Pelicans. Across his 13-year head coaching career, Terry boasts a 225-193 record with four NCAA Tournament appearances across three programs (Fresno State, UTEP, and Texas).
Vanderbilt adds the former Elite Eight head coach to its staff, as it continues to build on one of its most successful seasons in recent history. In year two of the Mark Byington era in Nashville, the Commodores compiled a 27-9 (11-7) record. They made a run to the SEC Tournament Championship Game for the first time since 2012, and were mere millimeters away from a berth in the Sweet Sixteen. The program also made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 2016 and 2017.
Terry returns to the assistant ranks for the first time since the 2021-22 season, when he served on the Texas staff under head coach Chris Beard. He also previously served as an assistant at Texas from 2002-2011, under head coach Rick Barnes. Terry has also served on staff at UNC Wilmington (1998-2002) and Baylor (1996-1998).
Heading into year three of the Byington era, Vanderbilt is seeking its first appearance in the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2012. Terry is the latest addition to the Commodores’ staff, which is also composed of Matt Bucklin, Xavier Joyner, and former Mississippi State head coach Rick Ray. Vanderbilt lost two of its assistant coaches this offseason (Kenneth Mangrum and Jon Cremins).
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“The hardest thing when you’re in a tournament like this is there’s a side of it with hurt and dejection, and you put everything into it,” Byington said following the Second Round loss to Nebraska. “We were a play away, an inch away, from being in the Sweet 16.
“You know, it’s going to take a while for us to get over, but I think it’s going to be a point that we’re going to look back and think of the unbelievable journey this season has been, how great these guys were to coach, how great these guys were for Vanderbilt, the memories they made along the way.”
With Terry joining the staff, Vanderbilt adds valuable experience as it looks to take the leap to one of college basketball’s sneakiest teams next season.
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