Ball State closing in on hiring SMU associate head coach Chris Capko

Sources confirm Ball State is closing in on hiring Andy Enfield’s top assistant, SMU associate head coach Chris Capko, as its next head basketball coach. CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein reported the news Thursday.

The news comes at a critical time for Enfield with the Mustangs in full roster retention and transfer portal mode now as the season ended Wednesday night. SMU fell 89-79 to Miami (OH) in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament.

Capko was promoted to Associate Head Coach at USC by Enfield on Aug. 30, 2021, after serving as an assistant coach since April 22, 2016. He then followed Enfield to the Hilltop when he was hired after the 2023-24 season.

Capko’s been linked to multiple jobs as the season wound down and now he’s expected to land his first head coaching opportunity. In December of 2023, Capko was cited by The Athletic as one of 21 assistant coaches to watch in all of college basketball.

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Capko, who served as the USC Director of Operations during the 2014 and 2015 seasons, returned to the Trojans after spending the 2015-16 season as an assistant coach for Florida International University (FIU).

Before he came to USC as the Director of Operations, Capko spent two seasons as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Georgia Southern (2012 and 2013) and as an assistant coach at Stetson (2010 and 2011).

Before his stint at Stetson, Capko served as a graduate assistant at Marshall where he assisted in the day-to-day operations of the program, monitoring academic progress of the players, weight training, conditioning, film exchange and assisting with the recruiting process.

As a player, Capko spent his first semester in the basketball program at the University of Florida under Billy Donovan. He later transferred to USF in Tampa where he played for three years. As a junior he was fifth in the Big East in assists and as a senior he was the Bulls’ team captain.

SMU finished the second season of the Enfield era with another 20-win campaign, finishing 20-14 overall.