Villanova athletic director Mark Jackson stated that coach Kyle Neptune will return for 2024-25.
Less than 24 hours after Villanova’s season-ending loss in the NIT opening round to VCU, Villanova athletic director Mark Jackson has answered a hot question surrounding the future of the Wildcats, particularly head coach Kyle Neptune.
In an exclusive with the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff Neiburg, Jackson backed up and doubled down on Neptune, stating that he still believes he is the right man for the job.
“I think we have the right guy in place to get us where we need to go,” Jackson said to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
“He knows what the Villanova standard is. He’s lived it. He knows we’re not meeting it right now on the court. He drinks and sleeps this job. I know he’s fully committed to try to get us back on top.”
Jackson has heard the noise, though.
“I don’t want to be naive and say I’m not aware of how unhappy a lot of people are,” Jackson said to the Associated Press. “It’s my job to pay attention to all of it. I listen to all of it. I ingest all of it. I know it impacts our head coach, too. It hurts him more than anybody else.”
The Wildcats are a combined 35-33 over Neptune’s two seasons since taking over for predecessor and Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright. Villanova had a slightly improved record this past season, but ultimately missed the NCAA Tournament and was eliminated in the first round of the NIT for the second straight year.
Villanova finished 18-16 overall after the loss to VCU.
There are doubts, but Neptune and Jackson are hoping that the third year will be the charm next season.
“I think we have a bright future,” Neptune said after Wednesday’s game. “We have a great staff here. The guys that come back, we’ll get them better in the offseason. We’re a great staff and we have people who support our program, so we’ll have a bright future.
“Obviously, we didn’t have the results we wanted towards the end of the season. I get it. I get the frustration. All we can do as a staff is go back and put our heads together. We’re going to come up with a great plan, push our guys as hard as possible during the offseason, recruit some great guys here and come back better than ever next year.”