Despite last night’s overtime victory against Cincinnati that should all but clinch a tournament berth for Oklahoma, there is still plenty of noise beneath the surface about the potential of Porter Moser’s departure. Several sources confirmed to me yesterday that Moser is the A1 target for DePaul, and that Moser himself has continued to reciprocate the interest.
We had previously reported that OU sources felt something was just “off” within the program, and that remains the case, even as the Sooners coast towards a spot in the field of 68. DePaul is not the only job Moser’s name has been connected to, but the possibility of Moser to DePaul has generated more buzz than any other potential landing spot for the Sooners’ head coach. It is surprising given the fact that DePaul is twenty years removed from its most recent tournament appearance, but understandable given Moser’s roots in Chicago and his Catholic faith. DePaul also has a large sum of money set aside for its next basketball coach, from what I have gathered. But Moser’s flirtations with the Blue Demons are not the only reason sources close to the program are concerned.
It is worth noting that Moser’s first two offseasons as Oklahoma head basketball coach have been marked by a lot of roster and staff turnover. In fact, only three members of the roster and/or staff have lasted all three years with Moser: analytics director Dylan Mihalke, strength coach Bryce Daub and Moser’s own son Jake, a walk-on guard. In conversations with sources, I have come to understand that even if Moser does remain at Oklahoma, he’ll be dealing with another round of substantial turnover this coming offseason. Those sources have indicated that multiple key contributors are likely bound for the transfer portal, due largely to what could be called philosophical differences with their head coach.
Essentially, there are two probable outcomes here. Either Moser will return for Year 4 at Oklahoma and have to rebuild much of his roster once again, or he will jump on the coaching carousel and head elsewhere. If he does elect to depart for DePaul (or any other job), it’s likely that Oklahoma would target Kellen Sampson to fill the vacancy. We will keep you members updated with more information as it becomes available.
We had previously reported that OU sources felt something was just “off” within the program, and that remains the case, even as the Sooners coast towards a spot in the field of 68. DePaul is not the only job Moser’s name has been connected to, but the possibility of Moser to DePaul has generated more buzz than any other potential landing spot for the Sooners’ head coach. It is surprising given the fact that DePaul is twenty years removed from its most recent tournament appearance, but understandable given Moser’s roots in Chicago and his Catholic faith. DePaul also has a large sum of money set aside for its next basketball coach, from what I have gathered. But Moser’s flirtations with the Blue Demons are not the only reason sources close to the program are concerned.
It is worth noting that Moser’s first two offseasons as Oklahoma head basketball coach have been marked by a lot of roster and staff turnover. In fact, only three members of the roster and/or staff have lasted all three years with Moser: analytics director Dylan Mihalke, strength coach Bryce Daub and Moser’s own son Jake, a walk-on guard. In conversations with sources, I have come to understand that even if Moser does remain at Oklahoma, he’ll be dealing with another round of substantial turnover this coming offseason. Those sources have indicated that multiple key contributors are likely bound for the transfer portal, due largely to what could be called philosophical differences with their head coach.
Essentially, there are two probable outcomes here. Either Moser will return for Year 4 at Oklahoma and have to rebuild much of his roster once again, or he will jump on the coaching carousel and head elsewhere. If he does elect to depart for DePaul (or any other job), it’s likely that Oklahoma would target Kellen Sampson to fill the vacancy. We will keep you members updated with more information as it becomes available.
