Utah State’s Jerrod Calhoun has been announced as the new head coach at his alma mater, Cincinnati. Calhoun is coming off a successful two-year tenure with the Aggies that included a Mountain West title and NCAA Tournament victory in 2026.
“Jerrod is a tireless worker, has an incredible passion and talent for developing not just players, but people, and has won at every stop along the way,” said AD John Cunningham. “He’s one of the best offensive minds in college basketball and has the pedigree to take Cincinnati basketball to the next level in the Big 12 and nationally. I’m looking forward to welcoming his wife, Sarah, and children, Jordan, Kennedy, Kendall and Quinn to the Cincinnati family.”
Calhoun is originally from the Cleveland area and played at Cleveland State for two seasons before transferring to Cincinnati, where he served as a student manager under Bob Huggins. He later spent five seasons on Huggins’ staff at West Virginia before getting the head coaching job at D-II Fairmont State (WV) in 2012.
He led the Fighting Falcons to a D-II NCAA Tournament runner-up finish in 2017 and was hired at Youngstown State, where he coached the Penguins for seven seasons. After a couple rebuilding years, Calhoun turned YSU into a winner – he won 24 and 22 games in his last two seasons, respectively, and won an outright Horizon League title in 2023.
Calhoun continues the legacy of successful Utah State head coaches moving into P5 jobs. He went 55-15 (30-10) during his two seasons, earning NCAA Tournament bids both years and this year scoring a win over 9-seed Villanova in the Round of 64.
“It is a tremendous honor to have the opportunity to lead the Bearcats’ program – one that I know intimately as an alum and hold in the highest regard,” Calhoun said. “I am deeply grateful to John Cunningham and President Neville Pinto for their trust and confidence in me to elevate this program and guide our student-athletes as we pursue championships. Our goal is to build a program that consistently makes Bearcats fans proud, both on and off the court. Sarah, our children and I are excited to get to work at a place that means so much to our family.”
Cincinnati moved on from previous head coach Wes Miller earlier this month after five seasons at the helm. The Bearcats have not been to the NCAA Tournament since Mick Cronin’s final season in 2019, and have yet to finish better than 7th in the Big 12 after joining three years ago.
credit to Cincinnati Athletics for the image