Men’s Basketball
AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
Stanford head coach Jerod Haase watches during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against UCLA in Stanford, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024.
Updated 10:35 a.m. Wednesday, March 18, 2026:
Former Kansas player and assistant coach Jerod Haase has been hired as the head coach at UNC Greensboro, the school announced on Wednesday morning.
“My family and I are thrilled to join the Greensboro community,” Haase said in a press release. “In the new era of college athletics, I still believe it is possible to win games, yet not compromise education and relationships. I look forward to developing leaders at UNCG and have teams compete at a very high level. This is an exciting time for me, and I plan to build this program with great enthusiasm.”
Haase most recently coached at Stanford for eight seasons before he was fired in March 2024, and he has served as a color commentator on college basketball broadcasts for ESPN since.
As a player, the native of South Lake Tahoe, California, transferred to KU in 1993 after one year at Cal and started for the Jayhawks for three years under Roy Williams from 1994 to 1997. His most productive season in total was his first, when he averaged 15.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game while shooting 37.2% from beyond the arc and was named the Big Eight newcomer of the year. The 6-foot-3 guard was also a multi-year Academic All-American and served as one of four team captains during his senior season.
Haase ranks No. 14 in career steals at KU, No. 16 in 3-pointers and No. 20 in assists in the program’s most recent media guide and holds the single-game record for most 3-point attempts (20 against Temple on Dec. 22, 1995). After completing his career at KU, he authored a book with Mark Horvath, “Floor Burns: Inside the Life of a Kansas Jayhawk,” named after the stat KU originated in his honor because of his propensity for diving on the floor.
Haase joined Williams’ coaching staff and spent four seasons as an assistant at KU, then 10 more with him at North Carolina. He received his first head-coaching gig at UAB in 2012, eventually leading the Blazers to an upset win over Iowa State in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, before moving to Stanford after the following season.
The Cardinal, who played against KU in each of Haase’s first four years, did not qualify for the tournament during his tenure, as he recorded a record of 126-127, including 67-84 in the Pac-12.
Brian Mackin, the athletic director at UNC Greensboro, was in charge at UAB when Haase came aboard there.
“Jerod brings a wealth of Division I coaching experience across multiple conferences,” Mackin said in the release on Wednesday. “He has demonstrated a meaningful commitment to integrity, academic success and player development. He also understands the importance of cultivating a strong fundraising network and engaging with supporters. We are excited to welcome Jerod and his family to the Spartan community.”
UNCG, which not long ago experienced success under Wes Miller (recently of Cincinnati), is coming off a season in which it went 15-19 and 9-9 in the SoCon before Mackin fired head coach Mike Jones.
Williams said in UNCG’s release that he was “ecstatic” about Haase’s return to college coaching.
“The people at UNC Greensboro are in for a fantastic ride,” he said. “The best group, though, is the players he is going to impact. I think Jerod and UNCG is a fantastic pairing, and I can’t wait to watch him on the court. Of all the players I have ever coached, I felt that Jerod cared as much about basketball as I did. He loved the game, he loved the competition, he loved getting better and he loved winning. These all came into focus because he loved to prepare.
“Some young men are going to be fortunate enough to have a great role model for the rest of their lives. He’s going to push them, care for them and teach them and I can’t wait to watch.”
Haase’s former KU teammate and current KU assistant coach Jacque Vaughn added the following: “I couldn’t be happier for Jerod and his family. When you play alongside someone the way we did at Kansas — you get to know the kind of person and competitor they really are. Jerod was the heartbeat of those teams. He was relentless, he was selfless and he made everyone around him better. Those aren’t just playing qualities — those are coaching qualities that will transform that locker room and community. UNCG made a great hire.”
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Written By Henry Greenstein
