Chris Beard Returns to Moody Center as Ole Miss Faces Texas in Emotional Matchup
Saturday afternoon in Austin won’t just be another conference clash-it’s a return years in the making. Chris Beard, now in his third season at Ole Miss, is set to walk the sidelines at Moody Center for the first time since his abrupt departure from Texas more than three years ago. And while the stakes are high for both teams in the standings, it’s the backdrop that adds a layer of intrigue to this one.
Beard was front and center when the Moody Center went from blueprint to basketball cathedral. He was there through the construction, the planning, the anticipation.
But he only got to coach five games in the brand-new arena before his suspension and eventual firing in early 2023. Now, he returns as the visiting coach, leading a Rebels team that’s fighting to stay relevant in the NCAA Tournament conversation.
Whether Beard feels any nostalgia or emotion about the return? That’s anyone’s guess.
He’s a notoriously intense competitor, and coming off a frustrating 84-66 loss at Tennessee-where he was ejected-he’s got more pressing concerns than sentimentality. His Ole Miss squad, sitting at 11-11 overall and 3-6 in conference play, has struggled to find the rhythm it had in his first two seasons.
A win over Texas wouldn’t just be symbolic-it might be essential to keeping postseason hopes alive.
Beard’s exit from Texas was swift and dramatic. In December 2022, he was arrested on a third-degree felony domestic violence charge following an altercation with his then-fiancée, Randi Trew.
The university suspended him immediately and fired him less than a month later. The case was ultimately dropped by the Travis County District Attorney’s Office due to insufficient evidence and a statement from Trew asking for the charges not to be pursued.
Since then, Beard has largely stayed quiet about the incident. In a March 2025 interview, he acknowledged the legal process and emphasized that he was never formally charged. He declined to comment on whether there was a nondisclosure agreement involved.
On the court, Beard’s brief tenure at Texas showed flashes of what could have been. He went 5-0 at Moody Center, including a commanding 93-74 win over then-No.
2 Gonzaga-a game that looked like the start of something special. The Longhorns were 7-1 when Beard was suspended, and interim head coach Rodney Terry guided the team to a 29-9 finish and a trip to the Elite Eight, their first since 2008.
Terry was rewarded with a five-year deal but couldn’t sustain that momentum. After going 40-29 over the next two seasons with just one NCAA Tournament win, Texas moved on. Athletic director Chris Del Conte hired Sean Miller in March 2025, hoping to stabilize a program that’s seen its share of turbulence.
Miller, for his part, has nothing but respect for Beard, both as a coach and a competitor.
“I consider Chris Beard a friend of mine,” Miller said. “We've talked occasionally over the last couple of years, as we've kind of both had our own respective journeys.
I certainly respect him as much as any coach in the country in terms of how he coaches the game, how he coaches his team, how he loves the game. I think we probably share in that.”
Beard’s coaching résumé speaks for itself. In 11 seasons, he’s compiled a 334-226 record, with stops that include Little Rock, Texas Tech, Texas, and now Ole Miss. His first two seasons in Oxford were promising-20-12 and 24-12, with an NCAA Tournament appearance-but this year’s group has struggled to find consistency on either end of the floor.
Saturday’s matchup is about more than just records or résumés. It’s about a coach returning to a place he helped build, even if his time there was cut short.
It’s about two programs trying to find their footing as the postseason draws closer. And it’s about the emotions-spoken or not-that come with unfinished business.
Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. CT at Moody Center. You can catch the game on ESPN+ or tune in on 1300 AM and 98.1 FM.