Commentary: Good job unexpectedly comes open

A year ago, Mark Adams was the toast of West Texas, a symbol of patience and level-headedness, an example of old-fashioned defensive toughness with a bit of the everyman modesty.

He was almost revered in Lubbock and Texas Tech “for not getting on that plane,” a reference to when head coach Chris Beard stunned Red Raider basketball fans in leaving for rival Texas in early April 2021.

As legend goes, Beard told Adams, his top assistant and defensive mastermind, that if he wanted to go to Austin, to get aboard the plane. A fast five days later, at age 65, when most are retiring, he had his dream job as head coach of his alma mater. Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt made an in-house hire from a program that had been to an Elite Eight, a national championship game, and the round of 32 in the three previous NCAA tournaments.

As Adams’ first season progressed, and Tech piled up one win after another on the way to 27, after they swept Beard and the Longhorns in two Big 12 games, Adams was billed as the brains behind the past success. He was seen by many as the one pulling all the levers behind the curtain as the Great and Powerful Oz, or, in this instance, Beard, accepted all the accolades.

A year ago this weekend, after defeating Notre Dame, 58-53, Adams and Tech were headed to the Sweet Sixteen.

It took Duke shooting lights-out in the final 10 minutes of that regional semifinal to eliminate Tech, 78-73. That 27-10 record was more than almost anyone could have imagined. The only thing harder to imagine was the next season.

Here it is one year later and Hocutt is beginning a coaching search for the second time in two years. The fall of Adams this soon and this far is stunning. There’s really no other way to put it.

This was almost an entirely new team because of the transfer portal and senior departure – 80 percent of scoring and 73 percent of rebounding was gone. A few injuries didn’t help, but injuries are part of any season.

Tech finished with a 16-16 record, and ninth out of 10 teams in the Big 12. But had that just been the issue, there might have been some rumblings, but no coaching change.

Adams, already suspended for the first Big 12 tournament game, was dismissed shortly after an opening loss to West Virginia. He left with an approximate $4 million in a contract buyout, negotiated down from $7.2 million.

There were repeated reports of dysfunction off the court that predated the season. There seemed to be a wide disconnect with Adams and donors, including Dusty Womble, whose name is on the gleaming Dustin R. Womble Basketball Center.

The whole thing had a Jerry Springer Show uneasiness to it. The end came in early March when one of the players wasn’t being coachable in practice in Adams’ view.

Privately, he had discussion with him, and in doing so, cited some New Testament verses in Ephesians. His heart might have been in the right place, but his judgment was not. Ephesians 6:5 begins “Slaves, serve your earthly masters with deep respect and fear.”

The remaining four verses soften that as to serving God. But when a 20-year-old Black player hears “slave” and “master” from a 66-year-old white man, he’s not hearing another word.

The private discussion didn’t remain private for long. Fairly quickly, an investigation led to Hocutt reprimanding Adams, which turned into a suspension two days later. Realizing this was the golden ticket to remove Adams after a trying season on and off the court, it came to an end less than a week later. So now there’s a restart.

Interviews will begin in earnest this coming week. The Texas Tech basketball job is a really good one. It’s probably a top 25 job. Some say top 15, but that may be stretching it.

They have support. Tech averaged more than 13,200 fans to rank third in the Big 12 and first in Texas despite a ninth-place team.

They have the facilities. The $32 million Womble facility may be the best in college basketball.

Tech pays well. They have won and won big recently, and have been to the NCAA tournament nine times in the last 20 years.

And the Raiders play basketball in the best conference in the country. What else do they really need to make a quality hire?

Hocutt and a committee of three others, including football coach Joey McGuire, is expected to aim high – and they should. You never know who just might say yes. But it will likely spiral down a bit to include Grant McCasland of North Texas, former New Mexico State coach Chris Jans, now at Mississippi State, former Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy of UAB, Paul Mills of Oral Roberts and Baylor assistant coach John Jakus.

I’m still waiting on Hocutt to call and pick my brain, but McCasland checks more boxes than any of that group.

Tech needs to get this one right, no matter how long it takes. It’s a very good job for a school with a strong history of hoops. They sure don’t need to be doing this again two years from now.

Jon Mark Beilue writes about regional sports for The Eastern New Mexico News.