Kevin Keatts fired: 5 NC State basketball head coach candidates
Ryan Odom
Odom continues to emerge as a hot name among coaching vacancies and has seen success everywhere he has gone. After nearly two decades as an assistant, highlighted by an eight-year stint in the ACC with Virginia Tech, Odom earned his first head-coaching position at Division II Lenoir-Rhyne. Odom was hired at UMBC soon after, and he led the 16th-seeded Retrievers to an historic upset over No. 1 seed Virginia in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. In 2022-23, the 50-year-old led Utah State to 26 wins and an NCAA Tournament appearance, and he has VCU on the cusp of doing the same this season, going 49-20 overall thus far in two years with the Rams. Odom lacks direct ties to NC State but is a North Carolina native. His familiarity with the ACC and proven success as a D-I coach would make him an upside hire in Raleigh.
