West Virginia Names Josh Eilert Interim MBB HC After Bob Huggins' Resignation

One week after Bob Huggins resigned as head basketball coach at West Virginia, one of his longtime assistants, Josh Eilert, is going to replace him on an interim basis for the 2023-24 season.

The school announced its decision Saturday following a report by CBS Sports' Matt Norlander that Eilert was expected to move into the role.

Stadium's Jeff Goodman added West Virginia athletic director Wren Baker used a search firm to look into "big names" who might have been able to take over, but the talent pool was limited at this point in the offseason.

Huggins, who was arrested in Pittsburgh on suspicion of DUI, released a statement on June 17 announcing his resignation from West Virginia:

The 69-year-old was originally hired by the Mountaineers in April 2007. He spent 16 seasons with the program, racking up a 345-203 record with 11 NCAA tournament appearances.

West Virginia advanced to the Final Four during the 2009-10 season for the first time in 51 years.

In the wake of Huggins' resignation, Tre Mitchell, Kerr Kriisa and Joe Toussaint have all entered the transfer portal.

Mitchell led the team in rebounding (5.5 per game) and tied for second in scoring (11.7 points per game) last season. Toussaint averaged 9.4 points per game in his first season with the program after transferring from Iowa.

Kriisa is back in the transfer portal after committing to West Virginia in April. He spent the previous three seasons at the University of Arizona.

Eilert worked with Huggins for 17 seasons dating back to his time as a graduate assistant at Kansas State in 2006-07. He made the move to West Virginia in 2007.

The Kansas State alum previously worked as an interim assistant coach and was hired as an assistant coach in July 2022. This will be his first stint as a head coach in college basketball.

Eilert is taking over a West Virginia program that finished 19-15 last season. The Mountaineers made the NCAA tournament as a No. 9 seed, losing in the first round 67-65 to Maryland.