Kansas State announced Sunday night that it officially parted ways with fourth-year head coach Jerome Tang, firing him for cause related to “public disrepute, embarrassment, [and] ridicule,” according to his contract.
But with Tang gone, it raises the question: where does K-State go from here?
Now that Tang is out, who’s going to step up?
Matthew Driscoll was announced as the team's interim head coach by Kansas State Athletics Director Gene Taylor following the decision to part ways with Tang. Should team change its mind between now and Tuesday against Baylor, there are a few options.
Associate head coach Matthew Driscoll’s name is atop the list of five total candidates, along with four assistant coaches: Jareem Dowling, Rodney Perry, Anthony Winchester and Bill Peterson.
But Driscoll's name stands alone. The three-time Atlantic Sun Conference Coach of the Year is also the winningest coach in ASUN history.
Dowling coached the Wildcats’ Elite Eight in his first year with the program and Perry boasts 18 years of coaching experience at the college level.
Winchester was recently promoted to the role of an assistant coach in 2023-24, and Peterson spent several years with Tang at Baylor.
Player-coaches aren’t entirely out of the realm of possibility either.
Following the 78-64 loss to No. 3 Houston, Tang referred to starting guard Nate Johnson and an injured Abdi Bashir Jr. as “Coach Bashir” and “Coach Johnson” following their role in what Tang referred to as “scout and preparation” for the game.
With the announcement of Driscoll as the interim, that result is highly unlikely, but given Tang's previous praise for their efforts isn't impossible.
Is there a positive outlook now that Tang is gone?
The Wildcats' fell to 1-11 following their first 0-5 start to conference play since the 1996-97 season.
It's since become one of the four worst marks in program history, and the worst since the 2020-21 covid year in which the team finished 1-13. K-State ended the year 9-20 that season, the second of three straight years below .500.
With Tang out of the picture, the likelihood of a turnaround looks promising. Even if the program loses out the rest of the way, there’s breathing room for the program to slow down and make a careful hire to fill his shoes.
If Tang’s termination stands without a legal battle, the University will also avoid having to pay the potential record-breaking buyout attached to his contract and the debts that come with it.
A win against Baylor on Tuesday night also has the potential to stop the team's current six-game losing streak dating back to Jan. 24.
As for the paper bags worn by the students, those are likely to stay if the team continues to lose with the final six games of conference play coming up, including the second game of the Sunflower Showdown against No. 9 Kansas in Lawrence on March 7.
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