It’s officially official. Fred Hoiberg has been named the new head coach of the Nebraska men’s basketball program.
Athletic director Bill Moos originally set the time table of “seven-to-14 days” for hiring a new men’s basketball coach. The hiring of Hoiberg moved much quicker than that and the two sides finalized a deal, a source confirmed to Hail Varsity early Saturday.
Hoiberg becomes the 28th coach in the history of the Nebraska men’s basketball program. That list of coaches includes his grandfather, Jerry Bush, who coached the Huskers for nine seasons from 1955 to 1963.
“First, I want to thank Bill Moos, Chancellor Green and President Bounds for the opportunity to lead the Nebraska men’s basketball program,” Hoiberg said in a statement. “I can’t express how excited I am to be back on the sidelines and to be coaching at a university that means a lot to my family and me.
“Lincoln is a special place for our family. I was born in Lincoln, my grandfather Jerry Bush was the head coach at Nebraska, my other grandfather was a long-time professor there, and my parents are proud graduates of the University of Nebraska. Nebraska has always felt like a second home.
“I had the opportunity to coach at Pinnacle Bank Arena with the Bulls, and I have seen first-hand that the facilities are as nice as any in the country. When you couple that with a loyal and passionate fan base, you can see there is great potential for the future of Nebraska basketball.”
Hoiberg was most recently the head coach of the Chicago Bulls from 2015–18. Before that, he was the head coach of the Iowa State Cyclones from 2010-15. At Iowa State, Hoiberg took the Cyclones to four straight NCAA tournaments and to the Sweet 16 in 2014. Iowa State also won the Big 12 tournament in 2014 and 2015 under Hoiberg’s watch.
Hoiberg replaces former coach Tim Miles, who was let go on Tuesday, March 26 after going 116-114 in seven seasons.
“We are excited to welcome Fred Hoiberg, his wife Carol, and their family to Nebraska. He will be an outstanding representative of the University of Nebraska, and a great leader for our men’s basketball program,” Moos said. “When you look at Coach Hoiberg, you see an individual who has had success as a player, a coach and served in an NBA front office.
“Fred’s background sells itself on the recruiting trail, and will help us bring in the type of student-athletes needed to compete at the highest level. The style of play he will bring will not only appeal to prospective recruits, but will provide our great fans an entertaining brand of basketball.”
Nebraska and Hoiberg agreed to a seven-year, $25 million deal. That would make Hoiberg the third-highest paid coach in the Big Ten based on this season’s salary figures.
Moos will formally introduce Hoiberg as Nebraska’s new coach Tuesday afternoon at a 3 p.m. CT press conference.
