The Ben Johnson era is over as University of Minnesota men’s basketball coach. After checking with sources and evaluating the facts, this space made a guess last Saturday that Johnson would be terminated soon.
Early today athletic director Mark Coyle made the announcement that after four seasons that included no winning Big Ten records, zero NCAA Tournament invitations, and dwindling fan interest from an already apathetic fan base, Johnson was out. Now comes the speculation about who Coyle will hire to revive a program that has been deteriorating for more than 25 years.
To be clear, this will be Coyle’s hire, not the choice of his boss. Multiple sources have told Sports Headliners it was then U president Joan Gable who pushed for the Johnson hire in 2021. This won’t be the case now for Coyle, who has been the AD since 2016. His selection is expected to be approved by the current U president, Rebecca Cunningham.
The ideal next coach is Johnny Tauer from St. Thomas. The Gophers need a gold-standard winner who is already established in this region, and a person who possesses knowledge and wisdom about the basketball and cultural landscape here.
Tauer is that person. He is revered by those who know basketball and what he’s done for the small school Tommies.
The Gopher job cries out for a savior who could match the success of the neighboring Wisconsin Badgers. The “Wisconsin Way” is built around elite coaching grounded in savvy recruiting, basketball fundamentals and unselfish attitudes.
The Badgers have earned success this millennium with Final Fours, Big Ten titles and national rankings. Much of that glory was built under the direction of Bo Ryan whose coaching history prior to Madison was as a Division III national championship head coach at Wisconsin-Platteville.
Tauer, 52, won a Division III national title for the Tommies in 2016. For four seasons he has led an ultra-successful transition into Division I with his mid-major program in the Summit League. He’s achieved much of his success with players from Minnesota, or nearby Wisconsin and Illinois. His player development skills and game coaching are extraordinary.
Tauer is a finalist for the Hugh Durham award by CollegeInsider.com, presented annually to the top mid-major head coach in college basketball. In 2025 the Tommies finished second both during the regular season and conference tournament to Omaha. His team was 24-10 overall and 12-4 in league play.
The Tommies were at the top or near leaders in a variety of conference stats including best turnover margin, assists, free throw percentage and three-point percentage. The Tommies ranked second in points per game and fourth in defense.
Tauer and Coyle are acquainted, with both being St. Paul residents and connected through Cretin-Derham Hall where their children have attended school. It’s unknown whether Tauer is on Coyle’s list but he should be at the top.
Tauer’s resume and state roots scream for him being the most rational choice to successfully turn around the long slide of Gopher basketball. At Minnesota he would be the most likely of any candidate to replicate the Wisconsin model.
Media speculation on candidates includes Brian Dutcher, Niko Medved, Ben McCollum, Ryan Saunders, Craig Smith and Kimani Young. “There’s no one close to John Tauer,” a college basketball insider told Sports Headliners.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there is a long list of hoops authorities who will testify as to how special Tauer is. That list, he offered, will range from Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard to faculty and patrons at St. Thomas, to Creighton head coach Greg McDermott, to the high school coaches who have met Tauer on the recruiting trail.
A perk with hiring Tauer, the source said, is no contract buyout will be required by St. Thomas. Then, too, Tauer is an ideal age to take the rebuild job at Minnesota. Young enough to have the vast energy required for the assignment, but old enough and settled in enough in the Twin Cities to make Dinkytown his last stop.
Would Tauer take the Minnesota job if offered? “No,” said the source.
He didn’t answer the question on a whim. He is familiar with Tauer and is also knowledgeable about the St. Thomas and Minnesota programs.
The authority said Tauer loves St. Thomas where he was a player and has been not only an assistant and head coach but a faculty member. Friends and colleagues know that Tauer (who holds a doctorate degree in social psychology) bleeds St. Thomas purple, and he doesn’t define his life by money.
Tauer’s compensation at St. Thomas is believed to be less than $400,000 a year. Minnesota could offer $4 million and more over a five-year deal.
The money couldn’t be better invested by the U, but the day might not be too far into the future when Tauer is earning seven-figures at St. Thomas. It’s believed the vision for Tommies basketball is joining the Big East Conference within maybe five years. Playing in a power basketball conference with the likes of other Catholic schools could be a coup for both the Tommies and the league, including an athletic department windfall.
The Tommies go into a new 5,500 on-campus arena next fall. If the Tommies become a member of the Big East and a top 25 ranked team, that building won’t even be big enough with all the fan interest in the Twin Cities. The Xcel Energy Center could be home for some of the Tommies’ biggest games.
There are a couple of other reasons the source is pessimistic about Tauer’s interest in the Gophers. Despite growing up in Minnesota, Tauer has no particular passion for the Gophers.
And more to the point, the source said, the U basketball gig is a “bad job.” The perception, he believes, is the U is a loser program. A program that has struggled for decades to win, and is characterized by fan apathy and minimal support from donors.
Coyle, of course, has a different view. In a statement released earlier today he said: “This is an extremely desirable job in one of the best conferences and cities in the nation, and we fully expect to compete at the highest level on and off the court. We provide a world-class experience for our student-athletes, have one of the best practice facilities in the nation and play games in a historic venue. We offer everything that is needed to be successful, and we will immediately begin a nationwide search for our next men’s basketball coach.”
The source, who believes Tauer would be a better Big Ten coach than Wisconsin’s Gard, also questions whether the St. Thomas Hall of Famer would be comfortable with the early years and the miseries expected with reviving the program.
He would be stunned if Tauer wants to coach the Gophers, while noting the opportunity to receive “generational wealth” now could be the one factor that lights up his interest. “They (St. Thomas) are not in a position to pay him millions of dollars,” the authority said. “Their faculty would go berserk.”
If Tauer were to leave St. Thomas, there would be lots of grieving on campus and with alumni. The feeling would be no one can replace him.
The feeling here is Tommie world won’t have to experience a devastating change.
6 comments
