Bob Huggins wants the Louisville coaching job

Just when you thought the Louisville Basketball coaching search couldn’t get crazier, here comes Huggy Bear. During an appearance on The Jerry Eaves Show this morning, former West Virginia coach Bob Huggins threw his hat into the ring for the Louisville job, telling Eaves he would be a “perfect fit” to rebuild the once proud program.

“I would want to be and do what Coach [Denny] Crum did. I’ve always had a love for Louisville, believe it or not. I love going to Louisville and playing. I love the fan base, the way they embrace the team, the way they embrace Louisville basketball.

“I think it’s a great place. I think it’s something that fits me perfectly.”

Last June, Huggins was dismissed from West Virginia after 16 seasons following a DUI arrest in Pittsburgh, which came just one month after he used a homophobic slur on a Cincinnati radio show. The Hall of Fame coach, now 70 years old, said he went immediately to rehab following his arrest and has been sober for 300 days. He told Eaves he wants to coach for another 10 to 15 years and could rebuild Louisville as he did Cincinnati and West Virginia.

“Cincinnati was in dire straits when I got there and the city of Cincinnati fell in love with what we did, the way we played, who we played,” Huggins said. “We weren’t afraid. We weren’t afraid to play anybody. And I think the people that we brought into Cincinnati to play were people that ended up being NBA All-Stars and I think they appreciated the fact that we didn’t hide from anybody.

“We were gonna play whoever it was. Line them up and let’s go play. And I think that’s the mentality that Louisville people would like to see.”

To be clear, just because Huggins wants the job doesn’t mean he’ll get it, nor is he even under consideration. Richard Pitino, son of Rick Pitino, is the rumored frontrunner (which is absurd enough in itself) and Charleston’s Pat Kelsey is another name going around. Scott Drew and Dusty May were the top candidates when the search began but both turned Louisville down, Drew to stay at Baylor and May to take the job at Michigan. The buzz around Illinois State head coach Josh Schertz quickly died down thanks to a wild game of telephone with Bob Valvano about Dusty May.

Will the Cards consider Huggy Bear? He certainly hopes so, telling Eaves he could fix at least one of Louisville’s problems.

“I put butts in the seats for Louisville when I was at Cincinnati.”