Frank Martin may be taking his infamous glare to South Carolina
In addition to plucking Missouri and Texas A&M from the Big 12, the SEC's raid has also apparently extended into the league's coaching ranks.
Kansas State's Frank Martin is in talks with South Carolina to become its new head coach, according to multiple reports. Both the Kansas City Star and The State reported Monday that Martin has reached an agreement in principle with the Gamecocks and could hold an introductory news conference at the school as soon as Tuesday.
That Martin would even consider leaving Kansas State for South Carolina is surprising since it appears to be a step down for him. Whereas Martin has led Kansas State to four NCAA tournaments in five years, the Gamecocks have made one NCAA tournament appearance since 1998 and went 60-63 overall in four seasons under former Western Kentucky coach Darin Horn.
Apparent friction between Martin and Kansas State athletic director John Currie appears to be the reason the Kansas State coach is considering a change. Martin has previously gone on record as saying he wasn't part of the decision to hold senior forward Jamar Samuels out of what turned out to be his final collegiate game last week as a result of a $200 payment he accepted from his former AAU coach.
Martin last year was linked to the Miami job, a move that would have made sense because of his ties to the city. Since he has no obvious ties to South Carolina, this potential move suggests he wants out of Kansas State and is willing to take any available major-conference gig to make it happen.
Credit South Carolina for recognizing an opportunity and doing everything in its power to make it happen. Martin has shown the ability to bring toughness and talent to a Kansas State program that wasn't exactly a juggernaut prior to the arrival of him and predecessor Bob Huggins, so the Gamecocks have to be hopeful he can repeat that feat.
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