Louisville finalizing deal to hire College of Charleston's Pat Kelsey as men's basketball coach
Louisville has found its next men's basketball coach.
A person close to the search process on Wednesday confirmed multiple reports saying the school is finalizing a deal with College of Charleston coach Pat Kelsey to make him Kenny Payne's successor.
The move comes after pursuits of two candidates, Baylor's Scott Drew and Florida Atlantic's Dusty May, didn't pan out.
Last week, Drew publicly shot down the notion he would leave the powerhouse he has built in Waco, Texas, over the course of two decades. May then accepted an offer from Michigan last weekend.
Other names tied to the Cardinals' vacancy down the stretch included Shaheen Holloway of Seton Hall, Eric Musselman of Arkansas, Richard Pitino of New Mexico and Josh Schertz of Indiana State.
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Kelsey, 48, spent three seasons College of Charleston. Last year, Charleston won a school-record 31 games and ended an NCAA Tournament drought dating back to 2018. This year, it went 27-8 and made consecutive March Madness appearances for the first time since 1997-99. He leaves with a 75-27 record and a .735 winning percentage.
The Cougars lost in the first round of both of their tournament appearances. As a No. 12 seed in 2023, they fell to an eventual Final Four team, No. 5 San Diego State, in the first round. They were beat as No. 13 seed by No. 4 Alabama on March 22.
Here's a look at Charleston's season-by-season record during Kelsey's tenure:
- 2021-22: 17-15 (8-10 Colonial Athletic Association)
- 2022-23: 31-4 (16-2)
- 2023-24: 27-8 (15-3 Coastal Athletic Association)
And here are three more things to know about Kelsey, who now faces the challenge of leading the Cards back to national prominence after they went 12-52 during the Payne era:
Pat Kelsey's coaching journey started in his hometown, Cincinnati
Kelsey was born and raised in Cincinnati. He played collegiately for a season at Wyoming, then transferred to a hometown school, Xavier, in 1995 to continue his career.
After graduating cum laude in 1998, he began his coaching journey as an assistant at Elder High School, where, as a player, he helped the Panthers win a Division I state championship.
From there, Kelsey went to Wake Forest and worked from 2001-04 as director of basketball operations under the late Skip Prosser. Then, he was promoted to an assistant role, which he held until 2009.
While in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he was colleagues with former Louisville assistant Dino Gaudio.
Kelsey left the Demon Deacons to become the associate head coach for Chris Mack at Xavier until 2012, when he left to become head coach of Winthrop. Mack, of course, was the Cards' head coach from 2018-22; and his tenure was marred by an extortion scandal involving Gaudio.
During his time at Winthrop, Kelsey amassed a 186-95 record, a .662 winning percentage and two trips to the NCAA Tournament. But, as was the case at Charlestown, the Eagles did not advance past the first round.
When the Cougars hired Kelsey in 2021, Mack called him "the most energetic and passionate coach in the country."
"The Lord blessed me with two things in a major, major way," Kelsey told The Charleston Post and Courier in 2023. "One, energy; I’ve just always had it. And two, I can do an extraordinary amount of pull-ups."
Pat Kelsey's salary, buyout at Charleston
With Charleston's historic 2022-23 campaign winding down last February, its Board of Trustees voted unanimously to give Kelsey a five-year contract extension.
"Pat's energy and enthusiasm have brought this program to a place it has not been in a long time," the Cougars' athletics director, Matt Roberts, said in a statement announcing a deal.
Per Charleston Athletics, Kelsey earned $1.1 million annually; $600,000 in base salary supplemented by $500,000 in private funds.
His buyout is $1.1 million through 2028.