Missouri has a new women’s basketball coach, and it’s not Jeff Mittie of Kansas State
Jeff Mittie was right.
Turns out, the Kansas State women’s basketball coach didn’t need to say anything about the reports that mentioned him as a candidate for the open job at Missouri.
The Tigers announced on Tuesday that they have hired former Tennessee coach Kellie Harper to replace Robin Pingeton in Columbia.
Mittie can now focus on coaching the Wildcats without that distraction looming over him or the team as they head to Lexington, Kentucky for their first game in the NCAA Tournament this week. No. 5 seed K-State will place No. 12 seed Fairfield on Friday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPNEWS.
He was asked if he wanted to say anything about the Missouri job on Sunday.
“No, I don’t have anything,” Mittie said. “I mean, my focus is on this team and my focus is on this tournament. So I’m not going to respond to internet things that go on.”
That statement came a few weeks after he said he was happy in Manhattan and he wasn’t looking to leave on his weekly radio show.
K-State fans were understandably worried that the SEC school may poach Mittie away.
Mittie has an obvious connection to Mizzou. Athletic director Laird Veatch helped hire Mittie at K-State when he was a member of John Currie’s staff from 2010-17. Mittie has won consistently during his time with the Wildcats. He has an overall record of 216-142 at K-State, and he has guided the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament six times.
According to sources, Mittie was on Missouri’s wish list along with Grand Canyon coach Molly Miller and others. Mittie had “conversations” with the Tigers as they conducted their coaching search, per sources, but he made it clear that he wasn’t willing to seriously discuss anything until K-State’s season was over. His interest level in the job is not known.
Athletic director Gene Taylor also made it clear to Mittie that the Wildcats wanted him to stay put, per sources.
Last June, K-State gave Mittie a contract extension that runs through the 2029 season. It would have been expensive for Missouri, or any other school, to hire him away. But that is no longer a concern.
The Wildcats enter March Madness with an overall record of 26-7.
This story was originally published March 18, 2025 at 4:14 PM with the headline "Missouri has a new women’s basketball coach, and it’s not Jeff Mittie of Kansas State."