College basketball coach Stan Heath has resigned his post at Kent State University following a magical season in which he guided the Golden Flashes to the "elite-eight" of the NCAA tournament.
Heath did not attend a Thursday news conference at which Kent State athletic director Laing Kennedy announced the resignation. The coach was in his first year at Kent State and had a five-year contract.
The 10th-seeded Golden Flashes won 30 games and lost six. They fell one victory shy of a Final Four berth, losing to Indiana 81-69 in the NCAA South Regional final.
Meanwhile, the University of Arkansas has scheduled a campus news conference for later in the day to announce its replacement for fired coach Nolan Richardson. Arkansas fired Richardson on March 1, four days after he said for a second time he wanted to be bought out, criticized fans and reporters and said he was treated differently because he is black. Heath, who is also an African American, is considered a prime candidate for the job.