‘Pretty shocking’: Xavier fans react to news of head coach Sean Miller heading to University of Texas
TEAM HAS GOOD TASTE. I DO WANT TO SAY AFTER A WIN LIKE THAT, OF COURSE, THIS NEWS NOT SITTING WELL THOUGH FOR A LOT OF FANS TONIGHT, IT’S BEEN SOMETHING THEY’VE HAD TO DEAL WITH BEFORE MILLER LEFT THE MUSKIES FOR ARIZONA. MORE THAN 15 YEARS AGO BEFORE RETURNING BACK IN 2022. NEWS FIVE’S DAISY KERSHAW JOINS US LIVE NOW FROM CINTAS CENTER WITH HOW THOSE FANS ARE REACTING TO THIS NEWS. DAISY. LINDSEY A LOT OF STRONG REACTION FROM FANS TONIGHT. AS YOU MIGHT IMAGINE, THE BACKLASH WAS SWIFT. THE SHARED SENTIMENT HERE SEEMS TO BE SHOCK AND ANGER. I FEEL LIKE WE’VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, BETRAYED ALMOST BY LIKE A CLOSE FAMILY MEMBER. BUT THIS ONE WAS PRETTY SHOCKING. WE CAN’T BELIEVE IT. LESS THAN A WEEK AGO, XAVIER FANS WERE CELEBRATING A WIN AGAINST TEXAS. NOW THAT FEELING OF TRIUMPH IS FEELING MORE LIKE A DISTANT MEMORY. VERY SOMBER MOOD HERE. THE MUSKETEERS LOSING SOMETHING TO THE TEAM THAT LOST TO THEM TONIGHT. A SOURCE CONFIRMING HEAD COACH SEAN MILLER IS HEADING TO UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS. I WOULD SAY I’M PRETTY EMBITTERED. DISAPPOINTED. IT’S OFTEN SAID BAD NEWS TRAVELS FAST. AND BOY, IS THAT TRUE. CRAZY TO ME THAT HE JUST BUILT THAT AND CALLED THIS PLACE HOME, AND THEN JUST LEFT ON US ON A ON A DIME. HE SAID A LOT OF GOOD THINGS ABOUT XAVIER. AND SO THAT THAT’S REALLY, FOR ME, WHAT IT IS LIKE IF WE FELT LIKE KIND OF AN EMOTIONAL BOND WITH HIM. I FEEL LIKE HE HAD A DEEP CONNECTION TO THIS COMMUNITY, AND I FEEL LIKE HE JUST THREW IT ALL AWAY AT A CHANCE. FOR WHAT? THIS COMING AFTER A SEASON ENDING DEFEAT IN FRIDAY’S GAME AGAINST ILLINOIS. FANS NOW WONDERING WHAT THIS MEANS FOR NEXT SEASON. I THINK IT’S A REAL BUMMER THAT HE’S GETTING OUT OF HERE. THE TEAM HAS BEEN ON TRACK OF JUST THE SUCCESS THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, AND THIS YEAR THEY LOOK REALLY GOOD, AND I THINK IT’S REALLY JUST GOING TO BEAT DOWN THE CULTURE OF THE TEAM. THEY SORT OF STARTING TO GET SOMETHING IN LINE THERE. THINGS WERE MOVING SMOOTHLY THOUGH. THIS FEELS TO MANY LIKE A SETBACK. THERE’S STILL HOPE HERE THAT THE TEAM WILL REBOUND. THERE’S STILL A LOT OF EXCITEMENT TO BE HAD HERE, AND THERE’S STILL HOPE FOR THE FUTURE HERE. FOR US. YOU HEARD OLIVIA TALK ABOUT THIS, BUT A LOT OF THE SHOCK FANS SEEM TO BE FEELING COMES FROM THE FACT THAT COACH MILLER STILL HAD FOUR MORE YEARS LEFT ON HIS DEAL WITH XAVIER. THAT SAID, RIGHT NOW FOLKS JUST SAYING THEY FEEL A STRONG SENSE OF DEJA VU. REPORTING LIVE TONIGHT FROM CINTAS CENTER, DAISY KERSHAW WLWT NEWS FIVE. ALL RIGHT, DAISY, THANK YOU. AND WE WILL HAVE MUCH MORE ON SEAN MILLER’S DEPARTURE ON OUR WEBSITE ON WLWT.COM. WE’LL CONTINUE COVERING THE SPORTS COVERAGE
‘Pretty shocking’: Xavier fans react to news of head coach Sean Miller heading to University of Texas
Updated: 11:39 PM EDT Mar 23, 2025
News of Sean Miller leaving Xavier for Texas is leaving fans in shock, but it’s something they’ve dealt with before.Miller left the Musketeers for Arizona more than 15 years ago before returning in 2022.”I feel like we’ve been betrayed almost by, like, a close family member,” said Xavier freshman Thomas Jordin. Less than a week ago, the mood was much different for Xavier fans as they celebrated a win against the University of Texas.Now, the Musketeers have just lost something to the team that just a week ago lost to them. News that Miller was heading to Texas was confirmed by WLWT on Sunday, just two days after a season-ending loss against Illinois in the men’s March Madness tournament. Many fans expressed disbelief and anger over the decision.”He said a lot of good things about Xavier, and so that’s really, for me, what it is like. We felt like kind of an emotional bond with him,” said Xavier sophomore David Wheler. Now, many fans are wondering what this means for next season. “I think it’s a real bummer. The team has been on track with the success of the last couple years. I think it looked really good, and I think this is just going to beat down the culture of the team. They were starting to get something in line there, things were moving smoothly,” said fan Ian Shcraft. Though this feels to some like a setback, there’s still hope here that the team will rebound. “There’s still a lot of excitement to be had here, and there’s still hope for the future here for us,” said sophomore at Xavier, Ben Eckstein.For fans, this feels like deja vu all over again. Miller still had four years left on his current contract with Xavier. Because of this, it’s something that many said they never saw coming.
CINCINNATI —News of Sean Miller leaving Xavier for Texas is leaving fans in shock, but it’s something they’ve dealt with before.
Miller left the Musketeers for Arizona more than 15 years ago before returning in 2022.
“I feel like we’ve been betrayed almost by, like, a close family member,” said Xavier freshman Thomas Jordin.
Less than a week ago, the mood was much different for Xavier fans as they celebrated a win against the University of Texas.
Now, the Musketeers have just lost something to the team that just a week ago lost to them.
News that Miller was heading to Texas was confirmed by WLWT on Sunday, just two days after a season-ending loss against Illinois in the men’s March Madness tournament.
Many fans expressed disbelief and anger over the decision.
“He said a lot of good things about Xavier, and so that’s really, for me, what it is like. We felt like kind of an emotional bond with him,” said Xavier sophomore David Wheler.
Now, many fans are wondering what this means for next season.
“I think it’s a real bummer. The team has been on track with the success of the last couple years. I think it looked really good, and I think this is just going to beat down the culture of the team. They were starting to get something in line there, things were moving smoothly,” said fan Ian Shcraft.
Though this feels to some like a setback, there’s still hope here that the team will rebound.
“There’s still a lot of excitement to be had here, and there’s still hope for the future here for us,” said sophomore at Xavier, Ben Eckstein.
For fans, this feels like deja vu all over again. Miller still had four years left on his current contract with Xavier. Because of this, it’s something that many said they never saw coming.
