Rick Barnes has begun his era as men's basketball coach at Tennessee.
Sources confirmed to WBIR Tuesday morning that the University of Tennessee has reached an agreement with Barnes. The university announced it will officially introduce Barnes as the next head coach during a press conference in Pratt Pavilion at 4 p.m. Watch the conference live on wbir.com and Live at 5 at 4.
Last weekend, Barnes, 60, left his position as head basketball coach with the University of Texas after 17 seasons. Since Monday, govols247 has reported that Barnes would replace Donnie Tyndall as head coach.
Just last Friday, UT fired Tyndall after just one season as the Vols' head coach.
Tyndall's termination came amid the NCAA's investigation into his tenure at Southern Mississippi. Tennessee administrators decided that it was highly likely that the NCAA would find Tyndall responsible for Level I or II violations, so they fired Tyndall "for cause."
Tennessee Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Dave Hart said Barnes will set the path for the Volunteers to "consistently compete for championships."
"Rick Barnes is an elite basketball coach in every respect," Hart said in a press release on the UT Athletics website. "Rick brings an extremely impressive track record of excellence, as well as much-needed stability, to our men's basketball program. This is an exciting day for our Tennessee family."
UT will give Barnes $2.25 million annually for six seasons, the largest contract UT has given a basketball coach, according to David Climer with The Tennessean.
Barnes' overall record as the all-time winningest coach for Texas was 402-180, leading the Longhorns to the NCAA tournament for all but one season. His teams have made the Elite Eight three times and the Final Four once, but Texas hasn't reached the Sweet 16 since 2008. This year, the 11th-seeded Longhorns' season ended with a loss to sixth-seeded Butler 56-48 in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Texas paid Barnes $2,550,000 annually, making him the 11th highest-paid coach in the nation, according to USA Today data.
According to The Tennessean, he has an all-time record of 604-314 for a career winning percentage of .658.
Barnes' hometown is Hickory, N.C., just three hours east of Knoxville. He graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne University also located in Hickory.
According to Barnes' bio on the UT Athletics website, he began his coaching career as an assistant coach at North State Academy in 1977. He was also an assistant coach at Davidson College, George Mason, Alabama and Ohio State. He was also head coach at George Mason, Providence, and Clemson.
Barnes and his wife, Candy, have a 30-year-old son, Nick, and a 27-year-old daughter, Carley. He also has two grandchildren, Avery and Caleb.
