Texas Basketball has fired head coach Chris Beard, per multiple reports on Thursday afternoon.
The firing comes while Beard currently faces a felony domestic family violence charge from an altercation with his fiancée on December 12.
Beard was arrested for the alleged assault and was later released after posting a $10,000 bond. Texas indefinitely suspended Beard without pay after the allegations.
The official report for Beard is in the tweet below.
Here is the official arrest report for Texas men's basketball coach Chris Beard (I removed the victim's name) pic.twitter.com/kROHOvJfxQ
— Anwar Richardson (@AnwarRichardson) December 12, 2022
The Longhorns will now be without their head coach when they come to Knoxville to face Tennessee on January 28. Associate head coach, Rodney Terry, will serve as interim head coach.
“The University of Texas has parted ways with Chris Beard,” Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said in a statement, per CBS Sports’ report. “This has been a difficult situation that we’ve been diligently working through. Today I informed Mr. Beard of our decision to terminate him effective immediately.”
More From RTI: Where the SEC Lands in Week Nine Basketball Rankings
Texas currently sits fifth in the Big 12 at a 12-2 record (1-1 conference record). In league play, the Longhorns defeated Oklahoma by one point on the road and lost to Kansas State in a 116-103 shootout.
The Longhorns are led by backcourt duo Marcus Carr and Tyrese Hunter. Carr is averaging 18.1 points per game, has shot .475 from the field along with a .448 from three, and has racked up 26 steals. Hunter is averaging 12.1 points per game and is shooting .430.
Texas goes to Oklahoma State for their third Big 12 matchup on the season this Saturday at 12 p.m. ET, while the Vols travel to South Carolina to take on the Gamecocks at 3:30 p.m. ET. With a win, eighth-ranked Tennessee would improve to 13-2 on the season and a perfect 3-0 in conference play.
