Why was Jerry Stackhouse fired? Looking at potential reasons behind Vanderbilt HC's departure

Vanderbilt's Jerry Stackhouse will not return for his sixth season at the Commodores. Vanderbilt's Athletic Director Candice Lee stated that Vanderbilt and Stackhouse, who signed a contract extension in October 2022, agreed to part ways.

The former NBA and South Carolina player signed a contract extension before the 2022-23 season. Thus, the school will have to pay a significant buyout.

Why was Jerry Stackhouse fired?

Vanderbilt has been in awful form this season. They have a 9-23 record overall after a 90-85 overtime loss to Arkansas.

Vanderbilt got off to a shaky start and was 4-8 before Christmas thanks to losses to teams like Presbyterian, San Francisco, and Western Carolina.

The Commodores were 4-14 in SEC play and finished second last on the table.

Throughout his Vanderbilt career, he had a 70-92 record and finished above .500 in just two of his five seasons.

The former All-Star's best coaching season came last year, after signing his contract extension. He led Vanderbilt to a 22-15 record and defeated Kentucky twice in March but failed to secure a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Jerry Stackhouse thanked the university for his first college basketball coaching gig and acknowledged that the results weren't good enough:

“All that matters is the results, and the results weren’t what they were supposed to be,” Stackhouse said after Wednesday night’s opening loss in the SEC Tournament. “The NCAA Tournament is the ultimate goal, and we haven’t done that. I haven’t done that. No matter what, those results are those results.”

Candice Lee also thanked Jerry Stackhouse for his leadership:

“Commodore Nation will always remember the ‘Memorial Magic’ moments we experienced under Coach Stackhouse’s leadership,” Lee said. “Given his pedigree, experience, and love of the game, I look forward to seeing what’s next for him.”

According to Yahoo Sports, Stackhouse will have a buyout of approximately $15 million.