It happened again.
For the third straight season, a longtime sitting head coach has retired just weeks before the season opener. Oregon's Dana Altman — the best coach in program history — retired effective immediately on Wednesday, less than 24 hours before the 68-year-old was slated to take the podium at Big Ten Media Days in Chicago.
Virginia's Tony Bennett in 2024. Auburn's Bruce Pearl in 2025. Now, Altman follows suit in flying away from the Ducks in 2026.
The common grumbles about NIL (excuse me, pay-for-play) and the portal (excuse me, free agency) are staples of the conversation, like usual. Altman grew frustrated with the consistent roster turnover and the voluminous court orders, injunctions and temporary restraining orders that have exploded after the NCAA's poorly timed rollout of the new five-in-five eligibility model, sources told CBS Sports. Altman had taken a backseat in portal negotiations this spring, handing the baton to top assistant Tony Stubblefield, who is now Oregon's interim head coach. Altman being swirled with retirement murmurs was nothing new.
But let's call a spade a spade: Bennett, Pearl and now Altman all bid adieu to rosters that left much to be desired. Bennett's last Virginia squad rated 80th nationally on kenpom.com in the preseason. Virginia would go on to finish just 15-17 and outside the top-100 nationally for the first time since 2010-11. Pearl was fresh off leading Auburn to the 2025 Final Four, but he had to replace seven of the top-eight players on the roster, including All-American Johni Broome and multiple other NBA players in Dylan Cardwell, Miles Kelly and Chaney Johnson. Pearl helped construct a roster that rated outside the top-30 nationally in the preseason, and sure enough, it finished 36th and on the outside looking in for the Big Dance. Handing his son, Steven, the head coaching job was certainly part of Bruce Pearl's calculus for retirement, but I'd be hard-pressed to believe Pearl would've had the stomach to simply walk away from another National Championship contender. That dude loved to be in the fight.
Big Ten expert picks: Projected order of finish, preseason predictions, top players to watch, starting lineups
Isaac Trotter
A similar script is being emulated in Eugene. Preseason prognostications aren't gospel after the whackiest offseason in college basketball history, but Evan Miya tabbed Oregon at 56th nationally in his early projections, and the Ducks were picked 13th in CBS Sports' Big Ten preview.
It's hard to argue with those grim outlooks when you look at a roster featuring major questions at the two most important positions on the floor: point guard and center. The PG1 was supposed to be Jackson Shelstad, who grew up in West Linn, Oregon, and idolized legendary Ducks guard Payton Pritchard. But Shelstad made the tough decision to leave. He transferred to Louisville this spring for a reported $4 million payday. That left a sting on Altman. This roster looks far different (and better) if Shelstad had stuck around for his senior season.
The stereotype that Oregon had no money frankly doesn't apply here, either. Even though close to $50 million has been dumped into building the Ducks' football roster, Oregon's coffers weren't fully empty for hoops. Oregon had north of $12 million to build a basketball roster. That's not elite money in the Big Ten, where Michigan, Indiana and Illinois are humming at $20 million or above, but it's right in the middle of the pack for a middle-of-the-pack program that was capable of finishing 25-10 in 2024-25 when lots went right and 12-20 in 2025-26 when injuries riddled the roster.
Altman finishes his career just eight wins away from the 800 Club. No rival coach will miss seeing Altman on the sidelines in the NCAA Tournament, where his teams seemed to play their best ball. He went 17-9 in the Big Dance at Oregon. A pretty good ledger in the most unpredictable tournament sports has to offer.
What now for Oregon's current players?
The timing of Altman's decision is by design and likely keeps Oregon's players from entering the transfer portal. By elevating Stubblefield to interim head coach status, Oregon's players cannot enter the transfer portal for 31 days --- not until Nov. 7. This rule was put in place to give the interim coach the time and opportunity to retain players.
Altman knows that the timing of this keeps the players locked into the Oregon roster, unless they want to risk missing the whole year to transfer and redshirt.
It also makes more sense, financially, for these players to stay in Eugene for the 2026-27 season. While it's a bit rude to the players who committed to play for Altman, it's not a total kneecapping. The direct deposits will still keep cashing. Oregon's entire staff will get paid for another year.
Oregon's brass also knew this day was coming. It will have a head start to sniff around top candidates before next spring's carousel. A mid-major hotshot like New Mexico's Eric Olen would make sense, but Oregon has the resources to make a strong impression on a high-major coach who wants access to that sweet, sweet Nike money.
There's always something under the surface for decisions this abrupt. It just so happens that this is the third time a last-second heel-turn occurs when the roster isn't elite.
It isn't a coincidence.
Projected starting lineup
G Fred Payne (Boston College transfer)
G Jasper Johnson (Kentucky transfer)
G Tyrone Riley IV (San Francisco transfer)
F Dwayne Aristode (Arizona transfer)
F Sean Stewart
