Indiana Basketball Coach Search: Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana is on its third basketball coaching search since 2017 after things didn’t work out for Archie Miller and now Mike Woodson.
The Hoosiers still have five regular season games left and a likely appearance in the Big Ten Tournament. But athletic director Scott Dolson has shifted some of the focus toward next season after announcing on Feb. 7 that Woodson will step down after the season.
We’ve already broken down some potential options such as Dusty May, Mick Cronin, Brad Stevens (who’s no longer a candidate), Bruce Pearl and Nate Oats, and we’ll continue to share information on a coaching search that could last another month.
An up-and-coming coach that would make a lot of sense for Indiana is Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland.
What makes McCasland an attractive choice for Indiana
McCasland provides a good combination of youth and proven experience. At 48 years old, he’s won at the mid-major and Power Four level, most recently with Texas Tech and North Texas. Indiana won’t want to be looking for another coach after four years again, so as long as the on-court success is there, age wouldn’t hold back McCasland from a long run in Bloomington.
Texas Tech moved up to No. 9 in Monday’s AP Top 25 Poll after a double-overtime win over Arizona State and a 93-55 win Saturday at Oklahoma State. The Red Raiders are 20-5 overall and tied for second in the Big 12 at 11-3, two games behind Houston for first place. They received a No. 4 seed when the NCAA Tournament committee announced the top 16 seeds Saturday, one month before Selection Sunday.
McCasland has exceeded expectations in both seasons at Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are on pace to finish much higher than their seventh-place projection in the preseason Big 12 poll. They also finished third last season at 23-11 and 11-7 in conference play after being picked eighth. In his first season, McCasland earned a No. 6 seed with Texas Tech but lost in the Round of 64 to eventual Final Four team NC State.
There’s a lot for Indiana to like about McCasland’s offensive track record. Texas Tech ranks ninth nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency, and it finished 27th last year. The Red Raiders lead the Big 12 in points per game (82.4), field goal percentage (48.2%), and they’re second in 3-pointers made (247) and 3-point percentage (38.4%), good for 15th nationally. Texas Tech doesn’t play fast – just 261st nationally in tempo – but it shoots efficiently from all areas of the court and ranks 293rd with just 10.7 turnovers per game.
McCasland immediately took Texas Tech to the NCAA Tournament after an impressive run at North Texas from 2017-23. He won the Conference USA regular season title in 2020 and 2022. In between those years, North Texas finished third in the regular season but reached the NCAA Tournament by winning the conference tournament. As a No. 14 seed, North Texas defeated No. 3 seed Purdue and advanced to the 2021 Round of 32. McCasland’s team also won the 2018 CBI and 2023 NIT.
Before landing his first Division I job, McCasland won a junior college national championship and was the national runner-up at Midland College, where he had an .821 win percentage in four years. He also went 55-12 across two years at Midwestern State. So while most of his career has come at lower levels, McCasland has proven in two seasons at Texas Tech that his formula can translate to winning at various stops. He also learned how an elite program operates while being an assistant coach on Scott Drew’s Baylor staff from 2011-16.
Why McCasland wouldn’t come to Indiana
There’s a common theme with McCasland’s career. He was born in Irving, Texas, and graduated from Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He has coached in Texas for almost his entire career, including stints at Midland College, Midwestern State, Baylor, North Texas and Texas Tech. It might be difficult to pry McCasland from the Lone Star State.
Texas Tech may not have nearly as much historical success or national prominence as the Indiana basketball program, but multiple coaches have proven recently that winning at a high level in Lubbock is possible. Chris Beard took the Red Raiders to the national championship game in 2019, and Mark Adams reached the Sweet 16 as a No. 3 seed in 2022.
Texas Tech was also tied for 10th in an anonymous poll by CBS that asked college basketball coaches which programs they believe have the best NIL situations. Indiana can provide that, too. But now that he has the Red Raiders rolling and ranked No. 9 in the country, McCasland may be happy to stay at a home-state school where he already knows he can win.
Is it realistic to expect McCasland to become Indiana’s next coach?
McCasland was considered a candidate for the Baylor job last offseason, when Baylor coach Scott Drew was pursued by Louisville and Kentucky. Drew wound up staying at Baylor, so we’ll never know what McCasland actually would have done if offered the Baylor job. But regardless of who was interested in McCasland, he made a few assertive comments about staying in Lubbock.
“The honest part is I just didn’t see any way, shape or form there would be a way we would leave Texas Tech,” McCasland told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. “And I don’t think it would have mattered what the school was in the world.”
“We’re at the right place and we’ve got a roster that I believe in and a place that I feel like we can win a national championship,” McCasland said. “And we’ve never done that in men’s basketball, and that’s honestly something that really sticks with me. I believe in this place and I believe that we can do it here, and there’s no place I’d rather be.”
Before the 2024-25 season, McCasland signed a new contract through the 2029-30 season that pays him $24.9 million over six seasons, an average annual value of $4.15 million, which is about equal to Woodson’s 2024-25 pay. The Avalanche-Journal also reported McCasland would owe 40% of the rest of his deal if he left for another job, so the buyout would cost Indiana just over $8 million.
There’s a lot to like about the Indiana job – from its financial resources to its strong recruiting ground and passionate fan base – and McCasland’s track record and age should warrant a pursuit. But McCasland appears to have what he needs at Texas Tech to win, and he’s motivated to do so in his home state.
