Manning Out As Wake Forest's Basketball Coach

Danny Manning is out as Wake Forest's head basketball coach.

Wake Forest University Director of Athletics John Currie announced Saturday Manning has been relieved of his duties.

“After a comprehensive review of the men's basketball program, and with the support of President Hatch and University leadership, I have determined that it is time for a change in our head coaching position,'' Currie says. “We thank Coach Manning, Julie and Evan for their service to Wake Forest and for their commitment to our student-athletes and the Winston-Salem community over the past six years.”

Manning has coached the Deacons for six seasons, but the program has struggled for the last decade, never finishing even in the mid-tier of the Atlantic Coast Conference standings under Manning or his predecessor, Jeff Bzdelik.

Manning went to high school in Greensboro and led Kansas University to a national championship. He spent 15 years in the NBA and was head coach at Tulsa before being named the head coach at Wake Forest in 2014.

“To be able to be able to make a decision to come back to this area, North Carolina, where basketball is so special...Tobacco Road – I've lived it, I've been a part of it and thanks to my late father, it's in my blood,” he said at the time of his hiring.

Randolph Childress, an assistant coach who had an illustrious career at Wake and whose son, point guard Brandon Childress, just completed his eligibility, has been named acting head coach.

Manning finishes his Wake Forest career with a record of 78-111.

“I am very thankful for having had the opportunity to lead the Wake Forest men's basketball program,” Manning said in a statement released by the university. “I am very proud of the numerous student-athletes I had the pleasure of coaching, especially the student-athletes who earned their degrees. I am particularly thankful for all of the hard work my staff has put in through the years.  I am so grateful to the Wake Forest community, who have made Winston-Salem a special home for my family and I from the second we stepped on campus in 2014."

Questions about his future at Wake Forest continued after another lackluster season that ended as many other teams were eyeing the postseason,  before the coronavirus outbreak shut down the ACC Tournament and the NCAA's.

But the pandemic has made coaching changes difficult as it has complicated important parts of the process, including in-person interviews with prospective coaches.