Brown is reportedly unhappy with SMU’s decision not to offer him a long-term contract extension.
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“I’m stepping down”, Brown told ESPN’s Andy Katz, offering no immediate details as to why.
Back in 2012, Tim Jankovich was hired as the team’s coach-in-waiting, and now he’ll take over for Brown.
The 75-year-old Brown coached four seasons at SMU. One of the players believed to be at the heart of the investigation was former standout high school star Keith Frazier, who remained a member of the Mustangs until his mid-season transfer this past January. He coached the Nuggets and Carolina Cougars in the ABA and won the 2004 National Basketball Association title with the Pistons.
On the college side, Brown has also coached at Kansas and UCLA.
Last season, SMU went 25-5 last season and 13-5 in the American Athletic Conference but was banned from the postseason after a Division I Committee on Infractions panel determined that the program committed rules violations, including academic fraud and unethical conduct.
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The boom-or-bust gamble paid off in some respects as SMU instantly became a factor for recruits it once couldn’t get to return phone calls, reached the NIT title game in Brown’s second year and ended a 23-year NCAA tournament drought in 2015. He is 266-99 as a college coach.
