Mizzou embarks on search for a ‘proven winner’ to lead Tiger women’s hoops

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

After 15 years with one coach at the helm of the Tiger women's basketball program, Mizzou Athletics is embarking on a search for a new voice.

On Wednesday night, the Robin Pingeton era officially came to an end, with a 20-point loss to Mississippi State in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. The veteran leader of Tiger women's hoops had already announced her decision to step away from the program at the end of the season, on Feb. 26. In fact, the athletic department honored her 15 years in Columbia, following Mizzou's senior day game.

However, with the natural end finally coming for Coach P, Athletic Director Laird Veatch took time to address them media, on Friday morning.

"I want to start by thanking Robin," he said. "Coach P has handled this entire thing with class and grace, not surprisingly so. For those of you that have been with her over these last many years, have spent time with her, that was right on par with who she is and what she's about."

You can watch the full press conference with Veatch in the video player below.

Veatch emphasized that it is an exciting time in Mizzou Athletics, as they will look to build this program up to be a consistent competitor in the SEC. However, in order to achieve that kind of success, he did acknowledge that the athletic department will need to invest more into women's basketball than it does now. Although he didn't get specific into what that investment would look like, he did hammer home that this is an department that is committed to women's hoops.

There are a variety of traits that Veatch is looking for in a new leader, but a proven winner was at the top of his list. You can find a full list of qualities the athletic department hopes to find in a new head coach below.

• Proven winner
• Head coaching experience at this level, with multiple stops
• A proven recruiter
• Real energy
• Relatable
• Knows herself/himself and understands the type of program that they lead
• Competitor
• Somebody that fits in Mizzou and Mid-Missouri

As it relates to coaching experience at 'this level,' Veatch isn't just narrowing it down to a specific conference or a specific level.

"I think there are various talents that can translate, so you have to dig into that further, but, I do think having somebody that's proven they can win and really knows their program is critical," he said.

Mizzou has hired TurnKey to assist in the search for a new women's basketball coach. It's the same firm that MU used in order to hire Veatch in April, as well.

MU's athletic director said he is not embarking on this search on his own. While he is keeping the circle small, he has assembled an experienced team, which includes Senior Woman Administrator Marcy Girton.

"We'll stay really aligned with leadership. So of course, I've had conversations with our president, the athletics committee of our board and understanding about kind of expectations and what to look for," Veatch said. "We'll stay connected with them through the process and, you know, getting input from others. We've been talking to some former student athletes, those in the community and have a pretty good sense of what folks think and what's really going to be successful here."

Mizzou will be working on a tight timeline, as the transfer portal window for women's hoops will open up on March 25. Since that is only a couple of weeks away, Veatch said that there is a number of support staff still around to manage roster retention, until they can make a hire they are happy with.

Veatch has already set a meeting with the current players on MU's roster and said he will do his best to keep them looped in on the coaching search.

"When I met with them at the end of last week, it was really just to kind of thank them for how they're doing, how they're managing this and to recognize the challenge," he said. "It's also really to encourage them to focus on the moment and work through this year, so we honored that. Now, we'll spend some time with them later today to to get some of that input about what they think we should be looking for or what fits here."

The search for a new women's basketball coach brings an, almost, end to a saga that's stretched on for about three years. Before Veatch took the job at the University of Missouri, former Mizzou athletic director Desiree Reed-Francois issued a reported ultimatum for Coach pingeton: NCAA Tournament or bust.

With Reed-Francois' sudden departure, Pingeton stuck around for the final year of her contract, despite missing out on the madness of March. On Friday, Veatch was asked why nothing was done about the women's basketball head coaching spot earlier on.

"I would leave that to the people that were here before me. I don't want to go back and try to regurgitate what I've been told third hand because I wasn't here to deliver it and see it through," he said. "I would tell you that it was certainly, you know, obvious where things were at when I first got here. Like you said, I was asked about it on my very first day. So, having that awareness and really just trying to be, you know, really transparent and open with Robin and with our staff and everybody involved throughout the process, I think, was healthy. In some ways it gave us a chance to land the plane like we have and to have this kind of exit."

Even after announcing she would be stepping away from the program, Coach Pingeton has been very supportive of the direction of Mizzou Athletics. She emphasized she's excited for the future of this program and wants a new voice to come in and lift these girls to a whole new level.

"I really appreciate that for a lot of reasons...It continues to help, on top of her just doing this the right way. It really did help position Mizzou to manage this process and possibly get a little ahead of the game, so to speak, in terms of our preparation and our communication about it," Veatch said.

The athletic department is now planning on going 'dark,' with no public updates, until the women's basketball hire is made.