“The University of Texas has parted ways with Chris Beard,” athletic director Chris Del Conte said in a statement announcing Beard’s firing. “This has been a difficult situation that we’ve been diligently working through. Today I informed Mr. Beard of our decision to terminate him effective immediately.

“We thank Coach Rodney Terry for his exemplary leadership both on and off the court at a time when our team needed it most. We are grateful he will remain the acting head coach for the remainder of the season.

“We are proud of our student-athletes, coaches and staff, who throughout this difficult time have continued to make us proud to be Longhorns.”

Hired to replace Shaka Smart on April 1, 2021, Beard posted a 29-13 record before he was suspended eight games into the 2022-23 season. Beard led the Longhorns to 22 wins in his debut, the program’s most since the 2013-14 season, and guided Texas to the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory since 2014 with a first-round victory over Virginia Tech before concluding the 2021-22 season with a second-round loss to Purdue.

Beard quickly emerged as the lead candidate the last time the school went through a coaching change. There is no shortage of viable candidates to replace Beard and with the Longhorns playing home games inside the state-of-the-art Moody Center, going to work in a new practice facility and with the Lone Star State’s fertile recruiting ground, the Texas job should attract an elite list of candidates.

Along with the list of coaching candidates put together by 247Sports national director of recruiting Eric Bossi, Horns247 has a look at the early list of coaches who Del Conte and Co. are likely to pursue or at least show interest in throughout the process of finding the program’s 26th head coach. The list will be updated as the process of hiring Beard’s successor unfolds.