Mark Madsen Cuts BYU Speculation With Commitment To Cal Basketball

Apr 12, 2024, 9:00 AM | Updated: Apr 15, 2024, 2:23 pm

KSL Sports

PROVO, Utah – The BYU basketball head coach search can take Cal’s Mark Madsen off the list.

Madsen, a former Utah Valley head coach who just completed his first season at Cal, has publicly expressed his commitment to remain in Berkeley.

After news broke that Mark Pope was landing the Kentucky job, Madsen, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was one of the first names considered as a potential replacement at BYU.

On behalf of myself and Hannah, we want to thank every single member of the Cal community for your unconditional love and support this year. We have felt welcomed and embraced. Gratitude would be an understatement. We love Cal and the Bay Area. We are excited and fully…

— Mark Madsen (@madsen_mark) April 12, 2024

On Friday morning, Madsen shared a statement on X saying he’s “fully committed” to the Cal Golden Bears program.

Mark Madsen remains “fully committed” to the Cal Golden Bears

“On behalf of myself and Hannah, we want to thank every single member of the Cal community for your unconditional love and support this year. We have felt welcomed and embraced. Gratitude would be an understatement. We love Cal and the Bay Area. We are excited and fully committed for the future here at Cal,” Madsen wrote on X.

Madsen continued in his statement by asking Cal fans to help continue building more “NIL opportunities” as the Golden Bears move into the ACC next year.

The former Stanford Cardinal star and NBA Champion with the Los Angeles Lakers has been a college head coach since 2019. He replaced Mark Pope at Utah Valley, where he led the Wolverines to a 28-win season in 2023 and an NIT Semifinals appearance.

Madsen earned the Cal head coach position, replacing Mark Fox. In his first season, he led the Bears to their most wins in four years. He received a contract extension that will keep him as the Bears’ head coach until the 2030 season.

BYU basketball seeks replacement for Mark Pope

If Madsen stays committed at Cal, BYU turns to other candidates in its head coaching search. Some notable potential targets include Utah assistant coach Chris Burgess and UNLV assistant Barret Peery.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.