It was a long, tenuous coaching search, but the Oklahoma State Cowboys have finally appointed a new head coach.
Steve Lutz, formerly of Western Kentucky, was named as OSU’s coach on Monday afternoon.
Lutz led the Hilltoppers to the NCAA Tournament in his lone season in Bowling Green. WKU won the Conference USA tournament to earn its spot in the big dance, and took on Marquette in the round of 64. Lutz’s squad fell to the Golden Eagles, but put up a good fight against one of the nation’s elite teams.
Before going to WKU, Lutz served as the head coach at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for two seasons, where he led the Islanders to two consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, losing in the round of 64 both times.
Lutz is tasked with replacing former OSU coach Mike Boynton, who was fired after seven season’s as the face of OSU basketball.
Several key players from last year’s OSU team are expected to follow Boynton out the door, including budding star, and Oklahoma native, Brandon Garrison, and guard Javon Small, who led OSU in scoring and assists last season with 15.1 and 4.4, respectively. Eric Dailey Jr., a rangy forward coming off a solid freshman season, is also in the portal.
OSU will be Lutz’s first high-major head coaching position, but when he took over at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, he was tasked with a similar roster retool. He brought on 12 new players during his first season leading the Islanders, and he may need to do something similar.
The Cowboys still have a few building blocks who, as of now, have not entered the transfer portal. Players such as Jamyron Keller and Bryce Thompson will provide Lutz with Big 12-experienced players — but if they come back to Stillwater remains up in the air.
Off the court, Lutz has experience with quick turnarounds in terms of roster construction, and his teams have taken a similar approach on the court. Lutz’s teams are known for a very modern, fast-paced style that generates a ton of field goal attempts. His team at WKU didn’t rank in the top 30 in any offensive statistic outside of two– shots made, and shots attempted.
Regardless of anyone’s thoughts on Boynton’s tenure, one thing was undeniable– he lacked an offensive system, or at least lacked the ability to consistently deploy one. That is not expected to be an issue for Lutz, who’s teams have maintained the same high-volume style over both of his stops.
In terms of players who could follow Lutz from WKU, Don McHenry stands out. McHenry still has at least one year of eligibility left, and led the Hilltoppers in points per game with 15.1 last season. With Small likely headed to a new school, and Keller having only one year of college experience, in a very different system, it would be wise to bring a veteran lead guard in to show players like Keller and Dailey the ropes.
McHenry is joined by teammates Tyrone Marshall Jr., and Babacar Faye as key players from WKU who could be useful in setting the culture at OSU if they choose to follow their former head coach.
Lutz inexperience will rightfully cause some fans to be trepidatious in outwardly supporting his appointment, but his system is going to breathe new life into an OSU program that feels like it is way more than 19 years removed from making the final four.
It is impossible to know if Lutz will restore OSU to its former glory at this point, but one thing is for certain–a new era is under way in Stillwater.
