ST. LOUIS – Travis Ford, the third-winningest coach in Saint Louis University Basketball history, is out after eight seasons.
The university announced late Wednesday that it would part ways with Ford, just hours after a season-ending loss in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship tournament. The Billikens finished the 2023-24 campaign with a 13-20 record, the program’s worst in nearly a decade.
“For eight years, Travis has led our men’s basketball program with passion and dignity,” said SLU Athletic Director Chris May via a news release. “This decision was not made lightly.”
Ford’s run in St. Louis ends with a 146-109 all-time record. SLU made one NCAA March Madness Tournament appearance under Ford in 2019 when the Billikens won the A-10 conference tournament. The Billikens also earned NIT Tournament bids in 2021 and 2022.
Ford, the highest-paid coach in the A-10 before his dismissal, has never finished better than fourth place in the conference’s regular-season standings. The Billikens program thrived behind stout defense in his early years. They ranked among college basketball’s worst in points per game allowed this year and never really found momentum in conference play this season.
“It is our expectation to regularly compete for conference championships and play in the NCAA Tournament,” said May. “Unfortunately, we have not met those expectations the last several years. We thank Travis for his dedication to SLU and wish him the best in the future.”
Ford briefly addressed the situation after Wednesday’s season-ending loss.
“Had a good run, won a lot of games. Great, great people. Great players, met a lot of great people. It’s been good,” said an emotional Ford.
SLU has not yet disclosed who may take over as the program’s coach or when.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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