It’s been almost exactly two months since Eric Musselmanthe movement of Arkansas to USC sent shock waves through college basketball. On Monday, the former Razorbacks head coach appeared on Jon Rothstein’s ‘College Hoops Today’ podcast and talked about leaving Fayetteville for USC, Arkansas’ job in general, not making the NCAA Tournament last season and more .
Musselman, who left the Hogs for Los Angeles and USC, started one of the most notable domino effects in college basketball history. His departure gave Arkansas the opportunity to recruit Juan Calipari of Kentucky and revolutionize the college basketball landscape in a way that hasn’t happened in a long time.
After five years leading the Razorbacks, the abrupt end of the Musselman era was confusing to many. However, people close to Musselman and his family knew of his strong ties to the West Coast, and if a job like the one at USC ever came up, his name would likely be attached. When asked if coaching at USC was a “coming full circle” moment for him, Musselman agreed.
“I certainly feel at home,” Musselman said. “This is my third time working in the Los Angeles market. It was the Clippers, Lakers G-League team and now it’s USC. But it’s super comfortable from a family perspective and we’re very excited to be back in Los Angeles.”
Musselman spent five seasons leading the Razorbacks and brought the program success it hadn’t seen in more than two decades. Despite adjusting comfortably to Los Angeles and returning to his West Coast roots, Musselman says the decision to leave a job in Arkansas proved difficult for both him and his family.
“Very tough. I understood it, my family understood it, our staff understood it, the work of the University of Arkansas is one of the best in the country,” Musselman said. “We felt like in the five years we were there, great things happened from a winning standpoint, from the NCAA March Madness Tournament runs and then from the guys’ Draft.
But USC is the right place at the right time, both professionally and personally. We left a great job. My wife and daughter are still in Fayetteville and will be heading here later this week to move here permanently. The family situation is that they have great friends in Northwest Arkansas, so it’s not only about leaving a job but also leaving the friends you made there. So it’s difficult.”
The aforementioned success during the Musselman era included back-to-back Elite Eights in 2021 and 2022, and three straight Sweet Sixteens from 2021-2023. While it’s fun to reminisce about those memories, it’s hard to ignore the disaster of Musselman’s final season.
Arkansas failed to live up to preseason expectations and limped to a 16-17 overall record, missing the postseason entirely. For a coach so used to being in the middle of March Madness, Musselman admits it was difficult being forced to watch from the sidelines last season.
“It was very difficult,” Musselman said. “But now, myself and the members of our staff who are here now, we understand how difficult it is to get to the tournament. When you make it year after year, you take it for granted. It will never be taken for granted (again). It’s hard to get in and it’s difficult to win games.”
To hear more from Musselman about his time at Arkansas and the current USC roster, check out the full interview HERE.
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