UCLA head coach Mick Cronin is no stranger to media scrutiny. At least since the 2012 on-court brawl between Xavier and Cincinnati, Cronin has repeatedly popped up in controversial, emotionally fraught moments.
Cronin’s latest news cycle comes after a disastrous road trip to Michigan, where the Bruins lost to the Wolverines and Spartans by a combined 53 points. After a flagrant foul by Steven Jamerson, Cronin decided to eject his own player from the court.
Later, he seemed to escalate a conflict with the media after the decision.
Cronin is a former conference and national coach of the year who took UCLA to the Final Four five years ago. But the relationship between Cronin and his program seems to have gotten off track over the last year or two, and this series of events in East Lansing is just the latest example.
UCLA is currently in a position to contend for an NCAA Tournament at-large berth. But if the Bruins fall out of the field – or even if they do punch a ticket – the athletic administration may decide it’s time to move in a different direction.
If that is what comes to pass, here are four names UCLA fans should keep in mind as their next potential men’s basketball head coach.
Brian Dutcher
If the Cronin era ends, San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher should be one of the first calls. The career assistant studied under Steve Fisher for nearly 30 years before finally taking the clipboard as San Diego State’s head coach in 2017.
Dutcher has utterly mastered Southern California recruiting and has gotten the Aztecs into the NCAA Tournament five straight years and counting – including the insane run to the national title game in 2023.
Dutcher would bring a proven process to UCLA and would keep the program operating at a high level. The only concern here is Dutcher’s age – he’s 66. But with a strong bench of assistants and the deeper pockets of a true blue blood, Dutcher could easily get back to the national championship game in Los Angeles.
Josh Schertz
Josh Schertz has done excellent work for the last five years at Indiana State and now Saint Louis. Someone is going to hand a major conference job to this man, whether it’s this year or next year. He’s just too good an offense-minded coach. The Billikens rank second in effective field goal percentage this season, per KenPom.
It might as well be UCLA that makes the big offer. Schertz turns 51 this summer, which means he’s got plenty of career ahead of him. Of all the names UCLA could consider, this one probably has the best potential for long-term success.
Tyus Edney
If UCLA wants to do that college thing where it hires one of “its own” guys, Tyus Edney could be a surprise finalist.
Already a member of the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame, Edney is a fondly remembered player from the 1995 national championship team. He’s best known for saving the Bruins in a second-round tournament game against Missouri, where he runs the length of the court with 4.3 seconds to go and banks in a runner to beat the buzzer.
Edney is now an assistant coach with nearby Pepperdine. He’s much greener than the names on this list, but he’s also much more steeped in UCLA lore.
At minimum, he’s a great name to pair with a guy like Dutcher as a potential future coach of the program.
Mark Few
Mark Few has a saying: “Don’t Mess With Happy.” But the Gonzaga legend is now in his 60s, having coached in Spokane since 1989. That is literally longer than I have been alive.
Gonzaga’s general growth arc seems to have peaked in the late 2010s and early 2020s. As the end of Few’s career approaches, would he be willing to make a change in order to give himself a more traditional shot at a national championship?
If Few is on the fence, there’s also the matter of money and resources. To be sure, the man has already made a lot of money over the decades. But perhaps a huge contract offer from one of the Big Ten’s richest programs – the sort of number that secures family futures – would be enough to pull him down the West Coast for these last few years of coaching.
UCLA Basketball Coaching Candidates
- Brian Dutcher
- Josh Schertz
- Tyus Edney
- Mark Few
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