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Report: Illinois hires Oklahoma State’s Brad Underwood as new head coach

By Will Schreefer

Feb 15, 2017; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood reacts during the first half against the TCU Horned Frogs at Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 15, 2017; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood reacts during the first half against the TCU Horned Frogs at Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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Illinois has landed on Oklahoma State’s Brad Underwood in their search for a head basketball coach

Illinois has honed in on a candidate to replace the fired John Groce, who was relieved of his duties two days after the Illini dropped its first game in the Big 10 Tournament to Michigan. Associate coach Jamall Walker will continue with his duties at the interim head coach through Illinois’s postseason.

Oklahoma State’s Brad Underwood has been tabbed as the replacement, fresh off an NCAA Tournament appearance with the Cowboys in his first season as head coach.

Underwood continues his climb up the coaching ladder, though it could certainly be argued this is a lateral move. He parlayed three successful seasons with the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks — one that ended with an NCAA Tournament appearance, and a First Round upset over 3-seed West Virginia — into a job with Oklahoma State.

In his first season with the Cowboys, he guided the team to an NCAA Tournament appearance, fueled by the most efficient offense in all of Division I. However, Oklahoma State went down in the first round against Michigan, in one of the most exciting games of the tournament’s first round, making him available to interview for the Illinois head coaching job.

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Without the terms of the contract agreement, it’s tough to see the motivation for the move. Illinois missed the NCAA Tournament in all but one of the seasons under head coach John Groce, whereas Oklahoma State has been a consistent participant in the last five years. The history at Illinois is certainly deeper. Early in the 2000s, the Illini consistently made it deep in the NCAA Tournament under the direction of Bill Self and Bruce Weber. They were the runner up in the 2005 national championship game — but that marks the last time they made it past even the Round of 32.

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But it’ll be a tough task ahead for Underwood. They went 19-14 this past year, and 8-10 in the Big 10. A number of contributors are seniors and will be graduating. There is a strong recruiting class coming in for the Illini, with two ESPN top-100 recruits and four players overall. But, with a new head coach and staff coming in, it remains to be seen whether all will remain committed to the school. Underwood becomes the latest coach tasked with bringing Illinois back to the glory days – we’ll see if he can manage the trick.