Andy Enfield is leaving USC for SMU. After over a decade as the Trojans‘ head coach, Enfield will take over as the new coach of the Mustangs.

Andy Enfield’s Background
54-year old Andy Enfield has been involved in basketball throughout his life.
Enfield played college basketball at Division III Johns Hopkins, a university in Baltimore, Maryland, which is renowned as an excellent medical school, and which has produced a number of lacrosse championships. Enfield is “considered by many the best [basketball] player in program history.” He was a “shooting guard and graduated with 18 school records. He holds the all-time NCAA record for free throw shooting percentage.” He played at Johns Hopkins from 1987 to 1991.
In 1994, Enfield became an assistant coach for the Milwaukee Bucks. He held that position until 1996 and then took a position as an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics. After a hiatus as a business executive, he returned to basketball, taking on a job as an assistant coach at Florida State. He held that position from 2006 to 2011. He was then hired as the head coach of Florida Gulf Coast University. Enfield became a sensation in his second year at Florida Gulf Coast, when he led the obscure program to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
In April 2013, USC hired Enfield. He was the Trojans’ head coach for over a decade. He repeatedly led the Trojans into the NCAA Tournament (“March Madness”) and took the team to the Elite Eight in 2021.
SMU’s Hiring of Enfield
Enfield was hired at SMU on April 1, 2024.
Welcome to the Hilltop, coach 🏀 pic.twitter.com/pFXGwtpUa8
— SMU (@SMU) April 2, 2024
In announcing the hire, SMU described Enfield in glowing terms:
“A proven winner, Enfield burst onto the coaching scene in 2013 when, in his second year as a head coach, he guided Florida Gulf Coast to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Following that success, he was hired by Southern Cal, where he has led the Trojans to five of the last eight NCAA Tournaments, including a run to the Elite Eight in 2021….
“He comes to SMU after 11 seasons at USC, where he compiled a 220-147 record and led the Trojans into the postseason six times in 10 possible seasons (the 2019-20 postseason was canceled due to COVID), including five NCAA Tournament berths and one NIT appearance.
“Enfield quickly brought success to the basketball program upon his arrival, as the Trojans set a school single-season win record and posted the most wins in program history over two-year, three-year, four-year, five-year, six-year, seven-year and eight-year periods. Enfield’s 220 wins ranks third on USC’s all-time wins list…. In 13 seasons as a head coach Enfield has a 261-175 mark.
“His teams also excelled in the classroom by setting the program’s top team GPAs for the Spring, Fall and Summer sessions. Enfield brought in eight consecutive Top-30 recruiting classes, with the 2022 class ranking No. 7 and the 2023 class ranking No. 4.”
According to the Associated Press, the fact that SMU is transitioning into the prestigious ACC is a significant factor in Enfield’s decision to take the new job.
Andy Enfield says he wouldn't be SMU's coach if the Mustangs weren't going to the ACC https://t.co/fDNwBttKmG
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 3, 2024
The USC athletic department wished Enfield well.
AD Jennifer Cohen on Andy Enfield leaving USC pic.twitter.com/0VrBnLwlXU
— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) April 1, 2024
CBS Sports reports on some of the details involved in Enfield’s transition from USC to SMU:
“USC coach Andy Enfield has left the Trojans to take the same job at SMU, the school announced on Monday.
“The move has been expected for days; rumors of Enfield’s departure surfaced more than a week ago.
“Representatives for Enfield, SMU and USC bargained in contract talks for a week, sources told CBS Sports. USC was unwilling to budge on the price of Enfield’s buyout, which dropped from $5 million to $2 million on April 1, per a source. SMU has been searching for a new coach after controversially firing Rob Lanier in mid-March after only two seasons with the Mustangs. Lanier took the school to the NIT this season with a 20-13 record and doubled the program’s win total from the year before.”
Stay tuned to Hardcourt Heroics for continued reporting on all things basketball, including the SMU and USC programs going forward.
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