NC State officials: Mark Gottfried remains our head coach

Amid reports about the future of Mark Gottfried’s employment, the NC State athletics department issued a statement emphasizing that Gottfried will remain the head coach of the NC State basketball team this season. Mark Armstrong of ABC 11 in Raleigh reported on Monday night that NC State has already made its mind up to move on from Gottfried after a disappointing season in 2016-17 and put feelers out to other coaches, notably Dayton’s Archie Miller, an NC State alumnus and former basketball player., The athletic department refuted the report about Gottfried and called the reporting on Miller “incorrect and blatantly irresponsible.” “Mark Gottfried remains our head coach and we are all focused
on our next opponent,” the statement read. “To suggest we have reached out to any other coach is
incorrect and blatantly irresponsible.”Gottfried has been under fire from both the fan base and media over the last month, with the Wolfpack going winless in February. He claimed following a 30-point loss to Wake Forest in Winston Salem — NC State’s third-straight loss of 25 points or more — that he wasn’t “paying attention” to the noise. “Truthfully, I’m not paying attention to any of that,” Gottfried told Matt Norlander of CBS Sports. “I haven’t had any discussions with anyone at NC State about that. I plan on being here for a long time.”Athletic director Debbie Yow addressed Gottfried’s status last week with a reply to a fan on Twitter stating, “To all our faithful fans who follow me on twitter: I will address the season after it ends.” NC State is currently 14-12 this season with a 3-10 record in the ACC after losing five straight games.The Wolfpack hosts No. 10 UNC on Wednesday after losing in Chapel Hill earlier this season by 51 points.