WVU Tech men's college basketball: Head coach Acord has interim tag removed

The WVU Tech men’s basketball program is officially in Corey Acord’s hands.

Acord, who served as the Golden Bears’ head coach last season, officially had the interim tag removed from his title by school administrators last week.

Acord, a Woodrow Wilson High School graduate, took to social media last week to express his gratitude.

“First off, I want to thank President (T. Ramon) Stuart, Athletic Director Kenny Howell, and the hiring committee for allowing me to continue to lead this program moving forward. It’s a great feeling to know that the values and vision of the university align with where we want to go as a basketball program. Your belief in me and the staff will never be taken for granted.

“I want to thank my family (Acord, Lusk, McDaniel, & Ayers) & friends for their constant love and faith in me throughout this process. Thank you to Ashley Acord for her years of support and helping me get to this point of my career. To all former players who allowed me to coach them, especially this past season, I will forever be grateful and not in this position without you all. Coaches who have mentored me along the way, you have played such an important part in my development and life.

“To Golden Bear fans, know that you will have a program that loves to compete, values getting better everyday on and off the court, and takes pride in making the university proud. We have some great young men in our program coming back from last season and have more on the way. Looking forward to a great 2026-27 season.”

A 2015 Woodrow Wilson graduate, Acord went on to earn a master’s degree in sport management from West Virginia University.

In 2020, he got his first coaching job when then-WVU Tech head coach James Long brought him on as an assistant. He remained on staff when Long left for the University of Charleston and assistant George Wilmore was elevated to head coach in 2022.

Wilmore left last summer for a job in the private sector and Acord was named interim head coach in August.

In Acord’s five seasons as an assistant, the Golden Bears went 85-50 overall and 39-28 in the River States Conference. They won the RSC Tournament in the Covid-abbreviated 2021 season and advanced to the second round of the NAIA National Tournament.

Tech earned an at-large national bid in 2022.

Last season, Acord was left with a depleted roster and had to essentially start from scratch. The Golden Bears finished 11-16 overall and 8-8 in the conference.

They clinched a spot in the postseason tournament and fell 76-71 to Indiana-Kokomo in the first round. Tech trailed by 15 at halftime but battled back and led 65-64 in the final three minutes before the Cougars reclaimed the lead.