Shortly after losing his job as head men's basketball coach at Texas, Rick Barnes has apparently switched states and conferences, taking the same job at Tennessee.
Unnamed sources told 247Sports.com Barnes has agreed to replace Donnie Tyndall, who was fired after one season.
"It's gonna happen sooner than later," a source told the website. "I wouldn't be surprised if there is an agreement in principle by the end of tonight."
Also citing unnamed sources, ESPN reported the an agreement between the two sides is "close, but not done yet." But the source said, "It looks as though it's going to happen."
While Barnes led the Longhorns to three Big 12 regular season championships and an NCAA Tournament berth in all 17 seasons he was there, but he only made it to one Final Four and won no national titles.
ESPN also reported Barnes wanted to stay and Texas was ready to oblige him, but at the cost of some sweeping changes. Barnes said he was "shocked" to learn news outlets had found out about Texas' offer to let him stay if he fired several staff members. Barnes chose the other option.
"I couldn't do that," he told ESPN. "That would be me saying this is about me. I've been carried by a lot of people here. We're in this together."
With its massive resources, Texas is expected to search throughout college basketball and even the NBA for their next men's basketball coach. ESPN learned two possibly leading candidates are VCU's Shaka Smart and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall.
Barnes' new job will be taking him into the SEC, a conference far better known for football. On the hard court, Kentucky and Florida have reigned in the SEC for the past several years, but Arkansas made a big step forward this year, finishing the season ranked in the AP Top 25. Tennessee's addition of Barnes could further raise the conference's basketball cred.
