Rodney Terry constantly auditioning as Texas interim coach

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Every game the TexasLonghorns play feels like an audition for interim coach RodneyTerry.

At some point, the school must decide if he deserves acallback.

What would that take? A Big 12 championship? A deep run into theNCAA Tournament? Texas hasn’t won the league’s regular-season titleor made it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since doingboth in 2008.

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte won’t discuss the searchfor a permanent replacement for Chris Beard, who was fired Jan. 5,or whether Terry is a top candidate for the position.

But the AD can see what everyone else can: Texas (17-3, 6-2 Big12) is ranked No. 10, shares first place in the Big 12 and hasn’tmissed a step since Beard was first suspended on Dec. 12 and thenfired following his arrest on a felony domestic violencecharge.

“I’m really proud of what they are doing,” Del Conte said of theteam this week. “I couldn’t be more pleased for him and our entireteam.”

Terry, who was the head coach at Fresno State and UTEP beforejoining Beard’s Texas staff, also deflects questions about hisfuture in burnt orange and whether he’s thinking about it everytime he’s on the court.

“The thing I can control right now is working with these guysevery single day. I love the team that we have. They believe inwhat we’re trying to get done,” Terry said. “I’m a firm believer inliving where your feet are and living in the moment. Enjoy thisseason, this journey. Tomorrow is not promised to us.”

Terry took over a team that’s deep in veteran experience andmaturity. Star guard and leading scorer Marcus Carr is a sixth-yeargraduate student. Forward Timmy Allen, the second leading scorer,is a fifth-year senior. Both are 23 years old.

Sixth man Sir’Jabari Rice is a graduate transfer from New MexicoState and the Longhorns’ go-to player to put games away in thefinal minutes with his 86% free-throw shooting — third in the Big12.

Texas players have described the confusion that surroundedBeard’s arrest, suspension and ultimate firing. Carr said the olderplayers quickly redirected the focus to the basketball court andnot the courtroom.

In return, Texas is 10-2 under Terry, with its only lossescoming against No. 5 Kansas State and No. 12 Iowa State, the twoteams at the top of the Big 12 with the Longhorns.

Terry wasn’t a stranger to Texas, having served on Rick Barnes’Longhorns staff from 2002-2011.

Terry and Barnes will see each other again Saturday when theLonghorns play at No. 4 Tennessee in the Big 12/SEC challenge. Whenthey were together at Texas, the Longhorns had their greatestdecade in program history: two national players of the year in T.J.Ford and Kevin Durant and making the Final Four in 2003 and theElite Eight in 2006 and 2008.

Terry said Barnes called him after he led Texas to an overtimewin over Rice, which came just hours after Beard was firstsuspended.

“He said to me, ’Be prepared to will this team throughout thecourse of the rest of this season, and you’re more than preparedfor this opportunity ... Go out and enjoy the ride try to takethese guys as far as you can take them,” Terry said.

Beard was hired to jumpstart a program that became stagnant inBarnes’ final years and couldn’t break through under Shaka Smart.It was working, too. Last season, Texas got its first NCAATournament win since 2014. Beard also pushed for people to come toTexas’ new arena, the Moody Center, and connected with fans duringhis campus “fireside chats.”

Then came the arrest and the charges, and Terry’s takeover.

Terry recently stepped into the spotlight a bit by appearing ona weekly radio show and a television program on the LonghornNetwork. Del Conte said putting Terry in those slots fulfillsnetwork contract obligations.

But they also allow Terry to build his own voice as the leaderof the Longhorns program, one that he insists is a player-ledteam.

“You put your players first,” Terry said. “I don’t need to bethe face of the program. My face is not pretty enough.”