Arkansas fires head coach Mike Anderson after eight seasons

Another SEC basketball coaching job has opened up, as Arkansas announced Tuesday afternoon they had parted ways with Mike Anderson.

The statement made by Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek, which can be read in full right here, noted some of the reasons for the change in direction.

“After a review of the program, including an analysis of the past eight years and a look forward, I have made a decision that a change in leadership will best position our men’s basketball program for future success,” Yurachek said. “In the past eight seasons, we have won a number of games and have made appearances in both the NIT and the NCAA Tournaments. However, in my evaluation, we have not sustained a consistent level of success against the most competitive teams in the nation to enable us to compete for SEC and NCAA Championships on an annual basis. That will continue to be the benchmark for our success throughout our athletic program.”

Anderson spent time at UAB and Missouri before returning to his alma mater in 2011. While Anderson got the Razorbacks to three NCAA Tournament and two NITs in his time, his 9-9 record between the two tournaments left something to be desired.

It’s important to note that Yurachek came to Arkansas from the University of Houston, and Yurachek has ties to Houston coach Kelvin Sampson, a coach expected to draw a lot of interest in various open coaching jobs over the next few weeks.