Darian DeVries set to depart WVU, leaving for head coach position at Indiana

Mar. 18—MORGANTOWN — For a third consecutive season, WVU athletic director Wren Baker will be conducting a head coaching search for the men's basketball program.

Darian DeVries, who spent just one season as the Mountaineers' head coach, accepted the job as Indiana head coach Tuesday night.

"Coach DeVries informed me of his plans to accept the head coaching position at another institution, " Baker said in a statement. "Coach and I had several conversations in recent weeks focused on working together to build on a strong foundation and continue to grow our program.

"I made it clear to him that WVU is committed to invest in him and provide the resources needed to compete in the Big 12 and nationally. Ultimately, he decided to move on, and I want to thank him for his time at WVU."

In a statement released by Indiana, DeVries said the school's tradition was too much to pass up.

"This is unquestionably one of the top jobs in America, " DeVries said. "As someone who grew up in the Midwest loving the game of basketball, I've always admired the IU basketball program for its championship-level success, tradition, and fan support.

"There's a passion to succeed at the very highest levels both within the Big Ten and in the NCAA tournament, and that's a desire that as a coach I share."

DeVries went 19-13 in his lone season in Morgantown, with the Mountaineers finishing in a tie for seventh in the Big 12. Matt Norlander of CBS Sports reported late Tuesday that DeVries signed a deal at Indiana for five years worth nearly $5 million per season. He was set to make $2.9 million next season at WVU.

WVU was in position to make the NCAA tournament under DeVries, but the team was unexpectedly left out by the NCAA selection committee on Sunday.

DeVries replaced Josh Eilert, who spent one season as the interim head coaching following the forced resignation of Bob Huggins in 2023.

That puts Baker back in the spotlight, as he'll conduct yet another coaching search. In less than three years as WVU's athletic director, this will be his eighth head coaching hire across all sports at WVU.

"We have an outstanding basketball tradition with some of the most loyal and passionate fans in college basketball, " Baker said. "We have tremendously generous supporters and a great partnership with the university that allow us to compete in this new era of college athletics.

"The alignment between the leadership of our Board of Governors, the university and athletics department is strong, and I am confident our momentum will continue as we work diligently to identify the next leader of our men's basketball program."

Even before the Mountaineers had been left out of the NCAA tournament, DeVries' name was being tied to job openings around the country.

At first, it was Iowa, which is home for DeVries—he grew up 90 minutes from the Hawkeyes' campus—but the talk of Indiana grew louder in recent days.

"We went into this coaching search with some very specific things we were looking for in our next head coach, and Darian emerged as someone who, on paper, met and often exceeded our criteria, " Indiana athletic director Scott Dolson said. "Once we had a chance to talk to him, we knew we had the right person. Darian has a plan for building a championship culture that can compete at the highest level on a year-in, year-out basis.

"He has extensive D-1 coaching experience that includes 15 trips to the NCAA tournament as a head coach or as an assistant. This past season at West Virginia, he inherited a last-place Big 12 team with no significant contributors returning, and managed to more than double its win total despite a pair of significant season-ending injuries."

As for who Baker may look at to replace DeVries, Colorado State head coach Niko Medved was a top candidate a year ago, before Baker went with DeVries.

Medved has ties to Morgantown through his wife, Erica, who was a former star athlete at Morgantown High.

The Rams (25-9) are playing Memphis on Friday in the first round of the NCAA tournament. In seven years at Colorado State, Medved is 142-84.

Utah State head coach Jerrod Calhoun led the Aggies to the NCAA tournament in his first season at the school. Utah State (26-7) plays UCLA in the first round on Thursday.

Calhoun was a former WVU assistant under Huggins, who was also the head coach at Fairmont State and Youngstown State. He led Fairmont State to the Division II national championship game in 2017.

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