Chris Beard Reportedly Hired as Texas HC to Replace Shaka Smart

The University of Texas has reportedly hired Chris Beard to be its next men's basketball coach.

Jeff Goodman of Stadium relayed the news Thursday.  

Beard, 48, has coached Texas Tech for the past five years. He led the Red Raiders to the 2019 national final, where they fell to Virginia in overtime. Texas Tech also went 27-10 the year before en route to an Elite Eight appearance.

This year's Texas Tech team went 18-11 and reached the Round of 32.

Before his Texas Tech stint, Beard coached at McMurry, Angelo State and Little Rock. He parlayed his single season at Little Rock, when the Trojans won 30 games and reached the Round of 32, into the UNLV gig. However, Beard left UNLV for Texas Tech a few weeks later when a vacancy opened following Tubby Smith's exit to Memphis.

Beard takes over a Texas program that went 19-8 and won the Big 12 championship but fell 53-52 to No. 14 seed Abilene Christian in the first round of the NCAA tournament. After the season, head coach Shaka Smart left Texas to take Marquette's head coaching job.

Beard has work to do, as he's losing the team's point guard (and second-leading scorer) in Matt Coleman III as well as the team's top rebounder in Jericho Sims. The two are seniors this year.

Still, Beard has found success in every one of his head coaching stops and could do the same in Austin.