While Rick Pitino’s quest for an eighth Final Four ended with Saturday’s loss to Arkansas, the Pitino name remained the hottest in college coaching.
A number of athletic directors with openings to fill, including at Villanova and VCU, have “Pitino” scrawled atop their short lists.
And their eyes are on the son of the iconic St. John’s coach — Richard, the coach at New Mexico.
Not that the younger Pitino is thinking about anything beyond Sunday’s second-round NCAA Tournament matchup with Michigan State.
“ADs and search firms are very eager to have this thing in place on Monday,” Richard Pitino said Saturday. “I’d love to see the transfer portal window be pushed back. Coaches are not all bad guys like everybody implies we are, but you’re put in a tough spot.
Indeed, NCAA transfer portal speeds up the offseason. The gap between season-ending losses and landing recruits from the transfer portal is nearly negligible. Schools are under pressure to move quickly to hire coaches. Look no further than Virginia’s announcement it had hired VCU coach Ryan Odom, a release going out to the media a mere 40 hours after the Rams’ season ended with a first-round loss to BYU.
So, when Richard Pitino’s 10th-seeded Lobos upset No. 7 seed Marquette on Friday, 75-66, New Mexico fans rejoiced while a few ADs might have groaned. Pitino is on athletic director Ed McLaughlin’s target list at VCU and reportedly is on Villanova’s short list, as well.
The younger Pitino got his head coaching start at Florida International, where he parlayed an 18-14 season into his first power conference opportunity. That came at Minnesota where three 20-plus win seasons and two NCAA appearances in his first five years had people thinking the younger Pitino might be on pace to match the accomplishments of his famous father.
Then, Pitino posted back-to-back seasons finishing one game under .500. He was fired and much of his up-and-coming luster was stripped away.
Still, despite that flaming out, Pitino got the gig at New Mexico, where — after finishing 13-19 in Year One — he has posted three straight 20-plus win seasons and back-to-back NCAA appearances.
PITINO PRIMER
Like Father, Like Son: Richard Pitino Has New Mexico Winning Big
The Lobos like to play fast and score a lot of points, which has them atop the Mountain West and eyeing the NCAA Tournament
Friday, Pitino led the Lobos to the program’s first NCAA Tournament win in 13 years. While some coaches are on the hot seat, Pitino is on the hot list of schools needing to hire their next coach. With the portal officially opening next week, the pressure to grab Pitino — or another up-and-comer — is high.
“I think the main message is, the portal opening on Monday is the dumbest thing ever,” Pitino candidly declared Saturday. “There’s no logic behind it whatsoever. Why not do it in April because school doesn’t end until mid-May, so give them a month? It is putting a lot of people in very uncomfortable spots.”
It’s particularly uncomfortable for coaches like Pitino, who are trying to prepare for tournament games even though popular thinking is that they’ll be elsewhere when the 2025-26 season tips off.
Sunday, Pitino and New Mexico square off with Tom Izzo’s Michigan State team, a coaching adversary that Pitino became more-than-familiar with during his eight years at Minnesota, when the teams were Big Ten foes.
“I (didn’t) win a lot, but I have gone against him many times,” Pitino said. “So I have, obviously, a high level of respect. Who does not? He’s one of the absolute legends and icons in this game, and he’s a great person, and he’s always been so very gracious to everybody, not just myself.
“I understand what we’re about to walk into because I’ve seen it. I’ve seen it in Breslin Center. I’ve seen it in the Big Ten Tournament. I’ve seen it in the NCAA Tournament one year we played them. So I know the task at hand. Our players may not know it, but they’ll feel it, certainly, to start the game. But if you’re going to beat them, it’s going to have to be a terrific effort.”
Richard Pitino’s next professional stop figures to go a long way to determining whether or not he’ll be remembered as another coach’s son who went into the profession or whether he’ll make a name for himself.
First, he’ll try to get past one of the masters of March.
“When he was in the league, it was fun to talk to him,” Izzo said. “How do I think he’s grown? I don’t know on a day-to-day thing, because I know this, he’s winning more games, and I mean at a high level. He’s been consistent with that.
“But come tomorrow from sunrise to sunset, I don’t like him at all, and don’t let him kid you, he doesn’t like me, either. As long as there’s respect, that’s all that really matters.”
Pitino has earned respect. He’s won 247 games in 13 seasons and led two schools to the NCAAs. No, it’s not his dad’s resume. But with a win Sunday, his team will reach the Sweet 16, while his famous father will be relegated to watching from the stands.
