Indiana basketball coaching search profile: Buzz Williams
Texas native Buzz Williams did not play college basketball but has built a lengthy coaching career with a relentless energy and passion for the game.
The 52-year-old began his career as a student assistant at Navarro Junior College (1990-92) and Oklahoma City University (1992-94). From 1994 through 2006, Williams worked his way through the coaching ranks, holding assistant jobs at Texas-Arlington, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Northwestern State, Colorado State and Texas A&M before landing his first head coaching opportunity at New Orleans in the 2006-07 season.
Williams spent one season at New Orleans, compiling a 14-17 record in the Sun Belt Conference before departing for an assistant coaching job at Marquette under Tom Crean.
When Crean left Marquette for Indiana in the spring of 2008, Williams remained in Milwaukee and in a surprise move, was named the program’s head coach. He inherited a talented roster that included Jerel McNeal, Dominic James and Wes Matthews.
Success followed in his first season at Marquette as the Golden Eagles earned a No. 6 seed and reached the round of 32 in the 2009 NCAA tournament. Marquette reached the Big Dance in five consecutive seasons under Williams from 2009 through 2013, including a pair of Sweet Sixteens and a trip to the Elite Eight in 2013.
But Williams was on the move after an underwhelming 2013-14 season in which Marquette finished just 17-15. He accepted the Virginia Tech job. The Hokies were coming off a 9-22 season under James Johnson and it was a significant rebuilding task in Blacksburg.
After a rough 11-22 campaign in 2014-15 and a NIT bid in 2015-16, Williams reached the NCAA tournament in three straight seasons at Virginia Tech from 2017 through 2019. In the 2018-2019 season, the Hokies won 26 games and made the Sweet Sixteen after earning a No. 4 seed.
Williams returned home to his Texas roots in the spring of 2019, accepting the Texas A&M job after the program moved on from Billy Kennedy.
The Aggies’ trajectory has been upward under Williams. Texas A&M is enjoying its best season yet under his leadership this winter, with a 20-8 mark through and a top-20 ranking in KenPom. The Aggies reached the NCAA tournament in 2023 and 2024 and advanced to the second round last season.
From a style of play perspective, Williams’s teams tend to be more deliberate and focus on limiting possessions. According to KenPom.com, all of his Texas A&M teams have ranked outside of the top 200 in adjusted tempo. He also doesn’t utilize the 3-point shot very often. Five of his six teams in College Station have ranked outside of the top 340 in 3-point volume.
Instead, Williams focuses on pounding the glass on both ends and getting to the foul line. Texas A&M currently ranks first in the country in offensive rebounding percentage and finished first last season. The Aggies have also ranked in the top 50 in free throw rate (FTA/FGA) in five of his six seasons at A&M.
Two weeks ago, ESPN.com wrote that Buzz’s contract buyout is “believed to be low” and his current contract runs through the 2027-28 after an extension in the summer of 2023. Given that Williams has switched high-major jobs twice before, it wouldn’t be surprising if he had major interest in the position if the Hoosiers come calling.
Category: Coaching search
Filed to: Buzz Williams
