MANHATTAN, Kan. — A source close to Kansas State basketball coach Frank Martin said Monday morning that Martin will become South Carolina’s next coach.
The source confirmed a report in The State, a newspaper in Columbia, S.C., that said Martin will be introduced as the Gamecocks’ coach on Tuesday. The State also reported that a trustees meeting had been called to discuss “a contractual matter.”
Earlier Monday, Martin’s agent, Richard Katz, said “we have had conversations” with South Carolina, but would not say a deal was done.
Martin spent the weekend in New York serving as a CBS analyst for the NCAA Tournament. Speculation heated up on Friday that South Carolina was making a push for Martin, but Martin sent a text to The Eagle saying he had not spoken with anyone about other openings.
Martin just finished his fifth season at K-State and has led the Wildcats to three straight NCAA Tournaments.
He has been linked to other coaching searches in the past, but signed a new contract with K-State in 2010. The deal runs through 2015 and pays him an average of $1.55 million per year after signing bonuses, but before performance-based bonuses.
By finishing tied for third in the Big 12 standings in 2010-11, he triggered a renegotiation clause. If a new arrangement is not met by June 1, Martin’s buyout to leave K-State would drop from $1 million to $500,000.
South Carolina is replacing Darrin Horn. The Gamecocks fired Horn after they won 10 games and finished last in the SEC this season.