Virginia tabs VCU's Ryan Odom as head coach

Field Level Media|published: Sat 22nd March, 11:22 2025

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament First Round-VCU at Brigham Young

Mar 20, 2025; Denver, CO, USA; VCU Rams head coach Ryan Odom reacts during the first half against the Brigham Young Cougars in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Virginia named Ryan Odom as the 13th head coach in the program's history on Saturday morning.

The Cavaliers learned all about Odom in 2018, when upstart UMBC made history under his direction by becoming the first No. 16 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament by upending Virginia.

Odom, 50, also has guided Utah State and VCU to the NCAA Tournament.

The Cavaliers parted ways with interim coach Ron Sanchez on March 13, just hours after losing to Georgia Tech in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. Virginia finished with a 15-17 record.

Sanchez took over when national championship-winning coach Tony Bennett announced his retirement just three weeks before the start of the season.

Odom led the Rams to a 52-21 record over the past two seasons, including a 28-7 mark in 2024-25. The latter team secured a share of the Atlantic-10 regular-season title, won the conference tournament championship and appeared in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, dropping an 80-71 decision to BYU in the first round on Thursday afternoon in Denver.

Odom owns a 201-117 overall coaching record with Charlotte (2014-15), UMBC (2016-21), Utah State (2021-23) and VCU (2023-25).

The appointment of Odom is a homecoming of sorts, as he grew up in Charlottesville while his father, Dave, served as an assistant basketball coach on Terry Holland's staff from 1982-89. The younger Odom was a ballboy for the Cavaliers.

--Field Level Media