By multiple accounts — like this one and this one and this one — Marquette coach Buzz Williams could have job opportunities at the end of the season if he so desires.
Williams, who is believed to be on the candidate list at Arkansas, Oklahoma and maybe even Texas Tech, is leading his team into an NCAA Tournament first-round game against Xavier on Friday. But will all the job speculation swirling out there, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel caught up with Williams and asked him for his thoughts on the situation.
You can read Todd Rosiak’s full blog post by clicking this link.
Part of Williams’ response to the job question is below:
“I don’t read that stuff. I know that it’s going on,” Williams told the Journal Sentinel. “This is not to dodge any question; I think that I am the most accessible and honest coach that there is, and that’s what I want to be about. But I do think that it’s unfair for me to make it about me relative to all the work that we have done and that our kids have done. I would rather the attention be on them.
“I think that’s the way that it should be. And I don’t think there’s any right or wrong way to answer a question, but I do think that it’s always right to make sure that the players are first. Considering that it was probably perceived that I couldn’t coach six weeks ago, nobody ever asked me, ‘Can you coach?’ So now, somebody on the Internet says I can coach, now everybody wants to say, ‘Well, where are you going to coach?’
Like I wrote above, Williams said a little more about it in the full blog post.
Williams, who is paid roughly $1.5 million a season according to the report, is a Van Alstyne, Texas native and has worked at places like Texas A&M, Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas-Arlington. He worked as an assistant on Billy Gillispie’s staff at Texas A&M.
Williams is in his third season as Marquette’s coach and has led the Golden Eagles into the NCAA Tournament each season.
It’s not clear if Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long intends to speak with Williams about the position. Or if Buzz Williams would even be interested in the Arkansas job.
That may be something we’ll find out in due time. Long will not hold any face-to-face meetings with coaching candidates until their seasons are over.
— Robbie Neiswanger • Arkansas News Bureau
