MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — Although it was widely reported that West Virginia had a “handshake deal” with James Madison’s Mark Byington to be the next head coach of the Mountaineers, those reports may have been a bit premature, and it appears that Wren Baker will meet with several candidates to replace Josh Eilert following the season.
One head coach that is expected to be at or near the top of the list is Darian DeVries. DeVries, 48, is the current head coach at Drake University. He started his career at Creighton, where he was a long-time assistant coach before accepting the job at Drake in 2018. While at Drake, DeVries has led the basketball program to incredible success.
In his six seasons with the program, DeVires has put together an impressive 149-54 record (.734 winning percentage) and a 78-33 record in the tough Missouri Valley Conference. DeVries, a native of Aplington, Iowa, has led Drake to 3 NCAA Tournament appearances, a Missouri Valley Conference Championship in 2023 and was named the Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021. In other words, DeVries has been incredibly successful in a short period of time, and has proven that he can quickly turn a program around.
In addition, DeVries’ son, Tucker DeVries, is a current player at Drake and is the two-time Missour Valley Conference Player of the Year, averaging 21.8 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game this season while leading the Bulldogs to a 27-6 record this season. Tucker DeVries has two years of eligibility remaining and would almost certainly follow his father to Morgantown if he coaches the Mountaineers next season.
With everything considered, Darian DeVries might just be the ideal candidate to take over for Josh Eilert next season. He’s young, he’s had tremendous success and he could bring one of the best players in the nation along with him next year.
If West Virginia picks Drake’s Darian DeVries as its next head coach, his son Tucker DeVries would almost certainly come, too.
Tucker, a junior, is the MVC Player of the Year, averaging 21.8 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game this season #WVU pic.twitter.com/0MpiXbjDtA
— The Voice of Morgantown (@voicemorgantown) March 10, 2024
