Bryce Drew, Vanderbilt's men's basketball coach the past three seasons, has been fired after the Commodores turned in the worst record in program history.
Bryce Drew cheers on Vanderbilt's men's basketball team during a game against Alabama in Nashville this past season. Vanderbilt went 9-23 and was the first team in 65 years to go winless in the Southeastern Conference. Drew went 40-59 record in three seasons with the Commodores.NASHVILLE - The worst season in the history of Vanderbilt men's basketball cost coach Bryce Drew his job.
The Commodores went 9-23 in 2018-19 and were the first team in 65 years to go winless in the Southeastern Conference as well as the first-ever SEC team with an 0-18 league record. Drew was 40-59 in three seasons at Vanderbilt.
New athletic director Malcolm Turner announced the move Friday. The Commodores' season ended nine days earlier with a 69-52 loss to Texas A&M in the first round of the SEC tournament.
"Vanderbilt is committed to competing at the highest levels on and off the court. After careful consideration, we've decided to make a change to the leadership of our men's basketball program," Turner said in a school release. "Bryce has represented Vanderbilt in exceptional fashion in his time here. I appreciate all of the contributions Bryce has made over the past three seasons to Vanderbilt, and we wish him all the best."
Vanderbilt said Turner will head a coaching search with support from Nicholas S. Zeppos, the school's chancellor.
Drew came into this season with big expectations after signing the highest-rated recruiting class ever at Vanderbilt. Then five-star point guard and potential NBA lottery pick Darius Garland injured his left knee Nov. 23 in a home loss to Kent State. Garland later announced his decision to withdraw from Vanderbilt to prepare himself for the NBA draft in June.
Even with five-star recruit Simisola Shittu on the roster, Drew and the Commodores never recovered from losing Garland. Vanderbilt beat then-No. 18 Arizona State on Dec. 17 and went into SEC play with a 9-3 record, but the Commodores closed the season with a school-record 20-game skid.
"My biggest concern is our players," Drew said when asked about his job status after the season finale. "This has been an emotional ride for them. Adversity that none of us have faced before. So my first priority is to them. I'm a basketball coach, but I'm also a mentor. I'm also a leader. I'm also going to tell their parents I'm going to care for their hearts and futures. That's my big concern. That's my job. That's what I do.
"There's definitely some things that we've recognized several months ago, some changes, necessary changes, that needed to happen. We've already been working on those changes and we'll continue to work on those changes."
Vanderbilt became the first SEC team to lose every game in league play since Georgia Tech went 0-14 in SEC competition in 1953-54. The Commodores also turned in their first losing season in 67 years at Memorial Gym, going 8-10 at home as attendance dipped through the season.
Drew was hired from Valparaiso, where he was a star player and his father, Homer, wrapped up his coaching career. Bryce Drew went 124-49 at Valparaiso before being hired by Vanderbilt athletic director David Williams - who died in February, shortly after retiring - to replace Kevin Stallings in April 2016. In his first season, Drew led Vanderbilt to the NCAA tournament and the Commodores lost their opening game to Northwestern.
The Commodores went 12-20 in Drew's second season. The arrival of a heralded recruiting class offered cause for optimism, but Vanderbilt went through a year in which the Commodores alternately struggled either to shoot free throws, rebound or hold on to late leads or the ball.
Speaking after the season finale, Drew said it had "taken a little time to realize what this job is here, realizing what we have to do to be successful, move forward."
"We need to have more skill," he added. "We need to have more shooting. I think we have some guys that are continuing to get better at their skill. If we can intertwine a couple ingredients with the guys we have, it's really going to help these guys blossom more, help our offense look better, it's going to bring a better confidence to our whole team."
Now a different coach will decide what must be done.