It’s shaping up to be an original Big East battle for a hot head coaching candidate.
And the early indications are divine for Providence.
Syracuse and Providence are battling for South Florida head coach Bryan Hodgson, according to the Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman, and his sources indicate the Friars hold the early edge.
“Both Syracuse and Providence want Bryan Hodgson,” Goodman said Tuesday on the “Field of 68: After Dark” podcast. “He’s in the thick of it right now coaching in the NCAA Tournament, and he’ll try to figure out which one. I think, according to my sources, Providence probably has the lead because they’ve got more money right now, they’ve got more NIL, they’ve got more resources.”
Syracuse and Providence are no longer conference-mates, with the Orange instead in the ACC, but both are looking to return to their Big East glory days.
Both are in the market for a new coach after missing the tournament for three straight seasons under their previous leaders.
The Orange moved on from Jim Boeheim disciple Adrian “Red” Autry, while the Friars axed Kim English.
Hodgson, meanwhile, has South Florida in the NCAA Tournament as a No.10 seed in the East Regional in his first season with the school, and the Bulls face No. 7 UCLA on Friday night.
He’s a fast riser in the industry, having gone 45-28 in his first two years as a head coach at Arkansas State before posting a 25-8 mark this year with the Bulls.
Although he grew up in Western New York, which could make nearby Syracuse appealing, Goodman believes the Providence job has certain advantages.
“As much as I’ve been critical of the Providence (athletic director) Steve Napolillo of his hire of Kim English, what he does great is raise money. He’s terrific at that,” Goodman said.
“They’re going to probably upwards of $10 million again …. where Syracuse is probably looking more in the $8 million range.”
Goodman also pointed to the lingering Kiyan Anthony situation with Syracuse, with Carmelo’s son arriving to much fanfare before being benched toward the end of the year by Autry.
“You also probably have to retain Kiyan Anthony, not sure everybody wants to retain Kiyan Anthony right now with how it ended,” he said, “there’s got to be a lot of questions because even Red Autry was benching Kiyan Anthony toward the end of the year at times.”
Hodgson is perhaps the hottest candidate after Saint Louis agreed to extend Josh Schertz.
Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, Boston College and Arizona State are the other schools from power conferences looking for new head coaches.
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