Ross Hodge named head men’s basketball coach as Grant McCasland departs to Texas Tech
The university named Ross Hodge the new head coach for men’s basketball on April 2. Hodge has been the associate head coach under Grant McCasland for the last six seasons.
McCasland will depart North Texas to accept a six-year, $18 million deal at Texas Tech University, sources reported Thursday.
McCasland arrived at North Texas in 2017, and the Mean Green won the College Basketball Invitational in his debut season. The team also won three consecutive Conference USA titles from 2018-2021. He led North Texas to its first NCAA tournament win in 2021 when the Mean Green upset Purdue University.
“We are grateful to Coach Grant McCasland for the last six seasons leading the Mean Green program,” athletic director and vice president Jared Mosley said in a statement. “He established a program that has won championships, reached new postseason heights, and brought many moments of excitement to Mean Green fans. He and his family will be missed in Denton, but we are excited about the foundation that has been built and what is to come for UNT Basketball.”
In McCasland’s final game, North Texas won its first National Invitation Tournament championship Thursday as the Mean Green defeated the University of Alabama-Birmingham in a 68-61 victory.
After Texas Tech coach Mark Adams stepped down, McCasland became a top name in the search for its new coach due to his previous role as the Red Raiders’ director of operations in 1999.
McCasland leaves the university as the second-winningest coach in Mean Green history with 155 wins and an overall record of 155-77.
Hodge said he looks forward to building on the team’s momentum going forward.
“I would like to thank President Neal Smatresk and Director of Athletics Jared Mosley for the opportunity to be the next head coach at the University of North Texas,” Hodge said in a statement. “For the past six years[,] we have poured our hearts into building a championship level program that this university and community can be proud of. I’m forever grateful to all the players and staff, past and present, who have helped us get here. We look forward to building on that amazing success and competing for more championships. My family and I couldn’t be more excited to continue being part of the Denton community and Mean Green Nation.”
Image source Mean Green Sports
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