The Board of Regents in a special meeting on Friday voted in favor of a five-year contract proposed by UNLV President Len Jessup and Director of Athletics Tina Kunzer-Murphy, which officially made Chris Beard the 12th full-time head coach in the history of Runnin’ Rebel Basketball.
Beard was then introduced during a media conference held on campus inside the team’s state-of-the-art practice facility, the Mendenhall Center.
“What a great day for UNLV and for Las Vegas,” said Jessup. “My first meeting with Chris confirmed what I had seen and heard about him. He’s a winner and wins the right way. He understands his responsibilities as coach to instill values that will help our student-athletes succeed on and off the court, and he has a vision to build a Runnin’ Rebel program that will continue to serve as a source of pride for our university, community and fans.”
Beard comes to Las Vegas after leading the University of Arkansas at Little Rock to a spectacular turnaround last season, which included both the Sun Belt’s regular-season and tournament championship and a victory over No. 12/10 and fifth-seeded Purdue in the NCAA Tournament.
