Report: Ole Miss coach Chris Beard staying put

Field Level Media|published: Wed 2nd April, 17:53 2025

Mar 23, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard reacts during the first half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against the Iowa State Cyclones at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

Head coach Chris Beard told Ole Miss that he intends to remain at the helm of the Rebels, after talking to Texas A&M about its head coaching vacancy, according to ESPN on Wednesday.

Beard was pictured in a social media post Wednesday with Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter, who captioned the shot, "Why stop now?"

Beard will reportedly get a raise, more staff resources and a stronger NIL package moving forward at Ole Miss.

Why stop now? ???? pic.twitter.com/SD9tcr8Npd
— Keith Carter (@KeithCarterOM) April 2, 2025

In his second season at Ole Miss, Beard led the Rebels to a 24-12 record (10-8 Southeastern Conference) and an appearance in the Sweet Sixteen, where the Rebels lost 73-70 to No. 2 Michigan State.

Ole Miss posted a 12-21 (3-15) mark in the 2022-23 season before Beard's arrival and have gone 44-24 since.

Texas A&M is searching for a replacement for head coach Buzz Williams, who left the Aggies for Maryland on Tuesday.

Beard's many connections to the state of Texas include his time as an undergraduate at the University of Texas and seven different coaching roles at Texas colleges.

Beard went 112-55 in five seasons as head coach at Texas Tech (2016-21) and led the 2018-19 Red Raiders to the NCAA Tournament title game, falling to Virginia 85-77 in overtime.

He was hired away by Texas, his alma mater, prior to the 2021-22 campaign, but his tenure there was short. He was suspended eight games into his second season, then fired after he was arrested and charged with third-degree family violence, though the charges later were dropped.

Beard, 52, is a four-time conference coach of the year and the national coach of the year twice (2019, 2025) with a career coaching record of 215-97 (.689). He has taken four programs to the NCAA Tournament, including Little Rock, which he coached for one season (2015-16) to a 30-5 record and a win over No. 5 seed Purdue in the first round.

--Field Level Media