Candidates to Replace BYU Head Coach Mark Pope

Mark is reportedly heading to Kentucky.

That happened fast, and at a school that doesn’t move fast, BYU will need to move quick to find a new head coach. Players will assuredly hit the transfer portal, so BYU will need to hire a head coach soon if they want to keep a chunk of the roster intact. The good news for BYU is that good NIIL money is committed to the program, and multiple sources told me that several BYU players singed contracts with the Royal Blue Collective today (Thursday). That doesn't mean they will stay with BYU. Depending on who BYU hires, I think many players and even Collin Chandler stay with BYU.

So, who will BYU go after next?

It’s not a rule that BYU needs a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be head coach for one of its programs, but I have a hard time seeing BYU hiring a non-LDS coach for football or Men’s Basketball. Based on what I know about what those coaches are asked to do privately, I think BYU wants a member of the Church to coach those two programs. If BYU does consider non-LDS candidates, the last candidate on my list is the one who I think they would consider.

The first 8 candidates on this list are all LDS.

The Top Candidates

Mark Madsen, Cal Head Coach

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Madsen is the first call you make if you’re BYU. A 2x NBA champion and former Stanford and Lakers assistant, Madsen had a successful four-year run at UVU before going to Cal this season. Madsen took a Cal team that finished 3-29 the year prior and went 13-19 this season. Madsen snagged Jaylon Tyson from the transfer portal, who is expected to be a first round NBA draft pick in this year’s draft.

The biggest roadblock is likely the buyout amount. Two sources with direct knowledge of the situation told me that Madsen had a bigger buyout for Stanford and BYU when he was hired at Cal. Just last month, Madsen signed a two-year extension with Cal through 2029-2030 which feasibly could have increased the buyout.

If that buyout amount is too high, I have a hard time seeing BYU paying. But hey, if billionaire Ryan Smith really wants Madsen he could help cut that check.

Madsen has great connections in the state of Utah and has proven he can be bring in high-level players from the transfer portal — think Fardaws Aimaq, Aziz Bandaogo, Jaylon Tyson, among others. He would be the best hire to replace Mark Pope.

Chris Burgess, Utah Assistant

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The former Duke and Utah big man played overseas for a decade before joining Mark Pope’s staff at UVU in 2015. He came with Pope over to BYU for three seasons before loving to become an assistant at his alma mater Utah two seasons ago.

Player retention shouldn’t be the main reason you hire a coach, but Burgess would have a good chance to keep a lot of the current roster intact since he has either coached or recruited many of the players. Fouss, Atiki, Trevin Knell, and Trey Stewart were all on the roster when Burgess was an assistant. Additionally, he recruited Dallin Hall and Richie Saunders and knows them well. He was also a big part of Collin Chandler’s recruitment and has a great relationship with Collin and his family. He also was the main recruiter for Brooks Bahr at Utah.

A main reason why I think Burgess would do great at BYU is because of his connections locally. There is some high-end talent in the state of Utah in 2026 and beyond. Burgess has GREAT relationships with local AAU folks and other influential people; Pope didn’t have the best relationship with everyone and that didn’t end up costing him much, but Burgess is universally respected. He could bring a lot of these high-end local kids to BYU.

The big knock on Burgess is his lack of head coaching experience. He doesn’t have that, and Utah hasn’t made the tournament in his two seasons in Salt Lake. I think the pros outweigh the cons, but that is something that has to be considered when weight Burgess versus other candidates. One other thing BYU admin may consider — would he bolt to Utah if that job ever opened? I’m not sure and I don’t think that should be a roadblock to hiring Burgess, but they should ask him in the interview and push to put a clause in his buyout similar to what Madsen has.

I would love Burgess at BYU. He gets the school, he could keep a lot the existing core, he has A+ relationships locally, he relates well with players in the portal since he was once a transfer himself, and he has has some national cache since he played at Duke.

If you want to keep a lot of the roster intact, hang onto Collin Chandler, and add someone like Utah commit Jaxon Johnson, Burgess is probably the candidate that checks most of those boxes.

Barret Peery, UNLV Assistant

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If you’re not familiar with Peery, he is a member of the LDS Church and native of Payson, Utah. Peery played his college ball at Snow College and SUU and has had several coaching stops. Peery was the head coach at Portland State for four seasons from 2017-2021 and has been an assistant at UNLV the last seasons. In between, he was the associate head coach at Texas Tech for one season where he helped direct TTU’s defense to the #1 rated KenPom defense in the country. Before all that, he had stops at Utah, Santa Clara, Arizona State, among several other schools.

Peery is one of the candidates with D1 head coaching experience from his 4 seasons at Portland State. Peery went at least .500 in three of his four seasons and amassed a 63-57 record. Nothing eye-popping, but also better than what Portland State has been historically. His teams played at PSU played a pressing, chaotic style that emphasized forcing turnovers. He wouldn’t necessarily play that style at BYU, but he has a great defensive background as evidenced by his work at Texas Tech.

Peery hasn’t coached in the state of Utah since he was an assistant at Utah from 2008-2011, but he has recruited the state of Utah and has good relationships with many influential local recruiting people. Additionally, multiple sources have told me influential people in BYU’s administration have liked Peery for years as a potential replacement for Pope.

I’m quite certain Peery would take the BYU job if offered, and brings a lot to the table with his background and coaching pedigree.

Others

Nick Robinson, BYU Assistant

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Robinson checks off a lot boxes. The former Stanford Cardinal was SUU’s head coach for 4 seasons from 2012-2016, compiling a 28-90 record. He’s also been an assistant at Stanford, LSU, and Seattle.

Robinson’s head coaching tenure was underwhelming, but he has that experience. He’s also been at BYU for 5 seasons and knows all the important decision makers and understands the school. I’ve heard good things from recruits about Robinson when he is the main recruiter, and he would have a chance to keep a bulk of the roster intact.

I mean this as no disrespect to Nick, but he just doesn’t have quite the juice as the first three candidates. He does check a lot of boxes, so I think he will absolutely be in the mix.

K.C. Beard, Houston Assistant

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A native of Parma, Idaho, Beard is one of the top LDS assistants in the country. He’s been with Houston since 2014 in various roles and has been an assistant coach the last couple seasons. Beard doesn’t have quite the breath of experience as others on this list, but he’s had the chance to learn under Kelvin Sampson building one of the nation’s top programs and has a year in the Big 12 Conference under his built.

Kevin Young, Phoenix Suns Associate Head Coach

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Young was born in Salt Lake City and been in the NBA nearly his entire coaching career. I just don’t see him having any interest in the BYU job — he’s a NBA guy and has a real shot at a NBA head coaching job. The only thing that gives me pause and makes me put him on here, besides his LDS ties, are that Danny Ainge and Ryan Smith could give him a call.

Alex Jensen, Dallas Mavericks Assistant

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You can copy most of what I wrote for Young above here for Jensen. Jensen played at the University of Utah and didn’t take that job when it opened a few years ago. Maybe he considers coming down to the college ranks now that he doesn’t have quite the line of site to be a NBA head coach that he did when the Utah Utes job was open, but I just don’t see him seriously entertaining the BYU job.

Quincy Lewis, Lehi HS Head Coach

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The former BYU assistant is arguably the most successful high school coach in Utah basketball history. He won 7 state titles at Lone Peak and now 2 at Lehi HS. Lewis was an assistant under Dave Rose from 2015-2019 and was one of the top candidates to replace Rose before BYU hired Mark Pope. I think Lewis will get consideration and has obvious local ties, but I have questions about how he would transition to a Big 12 job and how well he would be able to recruit in the transfer portal.

Wildcard

Cody Fueger, BYU Assistant

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If BYU were to hire a non-LDS coach, Cody Fueger would be the guy. Cody grew up in Wisconsin and was a student at the University Utah. He’s lived in Utah Country since 2013. He was BYU’s Director of Basketball Operations under Dave Rose from 2013-15, a UVU assistant from 2015-2019, and has been at BYU as an assistant since 2019. His kids have grown up in Utah County and Fueger understands the BYU/LDS culture as well as any non-LDS person out there. Basketball wise, Fueger was BYU’s “offensive coordinator” this year and was a big part of the offensive turnaround. He would have as good a chance as anyone to keep around many of the current players and was a big part of Collin Chandler’s recruitment; he also has a great relationship with the family.

If BYU is going to hire a non-LDS coach, Fueger would be the one guy they consider.