Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser is apparently a cockroach that not even a losing conference record over five seasons of mediocracy can exterminate.
Moser, once again on the hot seat, seemed to be headed to his doom leading the Sooners, but with his team respectfully putting up a fight and emerging as a longshot NCAA Tournament bubble team in March, ESPN college basketball writer Jeff Borzello reported on Wednesday that OU might actually go against every fans' wish and bring Moser back for a sixth season of mediocrity in 2026-27.
Sooners reportedly looking to bring Porter Moser back next season
Fans have been begging for the Sooners to move on from Moser for years now as he's gotten OU to the NCAA Tournament only once just last season thanks to another miracle streak right at the end of the regular season.
At one point this season, the Sooners had lost nine SEC games in a row and were just one more loss away from tying the worst losing streak in program history. That embarrassing history was avoided with an upset of then-No. 15 Vanderbilt, and the Sooners are 6-2 since that skid ended, which is the third-best mark in the SEC during that time, behind only Florida and Alabama, the top two seeds in this week's SEC Men's Basketball Tournament.
The Sooners head into the SEC Tournament on a four-game winning streak and suddenly on the NCAA Tournament bubble. OU first needs to beat South Carolina on Wednesday night, then Texas A&M on Thursday to have a role shot to go dancing.
Based on what Borzello reported, Oklahoma, even under new leadership with athletic director Roger Denny, is still content with mediocrity for men's basketball with Moser in charge.
"Things are trending toward Porter Moser getting another season at Oklahoma, although he could also look to make a move on his own before facing another year on the hot seat in 2026-27," Borzello wrote.
That leaves OU fans hoping for the latter that Moser cuts ties himself if OU never will.
Moser is 32–56, an abysmal .364 winning percentage, in conference play at OU, which includes three years in the Big 12 and two in the SEC. Even when the Sooners finally got into the NCAA Tournament for the first time under Moser last year, they still had a losing record in SEC play. That would be the same case again in 2026.
Moser's teams never give up. Fans can't deny that and even respect that. That's why the Sooners have been in the same position the last two seasons. But coaches at this level are expected to win, not just try hard.
Whether the Sooners make the NCAA Tournament or not, Moser's fate should already be decided, and most fans already assumed it was. An NCAA Tournament berth could prolong Moser's departure for another week, but it shouldn't for another year of mediocracy.