It has been one week since Thad Matta’s abrupt retirement as Butler basketball coach and Butler has yet to fill its top coaching position.
As the coaching carousel continues to spin throughout the college basketball world, here’s the latest intel on Butler’s search for its next coach.
A decision is looming
A source close to Butler told IndyStar that the coaching search, led by athletic director Grant Leiendecker, is in its final stages with a decision expected to come mid-to-late this week.
Here’s a rundown of what we’re hearing on names that have emerged.
Travis Steele
A source with knowledge of the coaching search told USA TODAY Network that Miami (Ohio) coach Travis Steele is not expected to be Butler’s next coach. It is unclear if Steele was offered the job, but the Danville native and Butler alum may not have the same internal support of other potential candidates.
John Groce
Akron coach John Groce has support from at least one prominent member of Butler’s inner circle. Groce is a Muncie native, and former Butler assistant coach under Thad Matta during the 2000-01 season. Groce worked for Matta at Xavier from 2001 to 2004 and followed Matta to Ohio State where he was an assistant from 2004 to 2008 before taking over as Ohio’s head coach in 2008.
Groce took over Akron in 2017 and led the Zips to their third straight NCAA Tournament appearance this season, and fourth in five years. Groce has a 197-94 record in nine seasons at Akron. He’s 377-225 between Ohio, Illinois and Akron.
Ronald Nored
Atlanta Hawks assistant coach Ronald Nored and Leiendecker played together at Butler for three seasons, including Butler’s back-to-back national championship runner-up teams in 2010 and 2011. Of the potential coaching candidates, Nored is the only one without head-coaching experience, but his relationship with Leiendecker provides a level of familiarity and comfort for the AD in what is his first men’s basketball head coach search.
Nored coached one season at Brownsburg High School in 2012-13. He was an assistant at Northern Kentucky during the 2015-16 season. The remainder of his coaching experience comes as an assistant in the G League and the NBA.
Micah Shrewsberry
Notre Dame coach Micah Shrewsberry is another coach getting serious consideration for Butler’s head coaching position according to a source. One complicating factor in hiring Shrewsberry is the buyout that would have to be negotiated between Butler and Notre Dame. In 2023, Jeff Goodman reported Shrewsberry signed a seven-year deal with Notre Dame at “well more than $4 million annually.”
Shrewsberry would still have four years remaining on his contract, and the terms of his buyout are not publicly available. Shrewsberry is 41-56 in three seasons as Notre Dame’s coach. The Indianapolis native, Cathedral grad and former Butler assistant came to Notre Dame after two seasons at Penn State. In 2023, Shrewsberry led the Nittany Lions to a 23-14 record and a second-round appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Chris Holtmann
Another candidate to consider is DePaul coach Chris Holtmann, according to a source. Holtmann spent three seasons as Butler’s head coach before succeeding Matta at Ohio State. Holtmann’s .693 winning percentage trails only Brad Stevens’ .772 among Butler coaches in the last 100 years.
Holtmann was an assistant under Groce at Ohio from 2008 to 2010. He served as Gardner-Webb’s head coach for three seasons before coming to Butler as an assistant under Brandon Miller. Holtmann became the interim coach at Butler in October of 2014 and was elevated to head coach in January of 2015. Holtmann is 30-36 in two seasons at DePaul. He has a 281-207 record between Gardner-Webb, Butler, Ohio State and DePaul.
