Chris Beard has emerged as the leading candidate for the basketball job at Ole Miss.

Beard was fired by the Texas Longhorns in January in the wake of an arrest on the morning of Dec. 12. His fiancée, Randi Trew, called 911 and told officers that he choked her from behind, bit her and hit her when the two got in an argument.

Trew later released a statement on Dec. 23 in which she denied telling police that Beard choked her and said she "initiated a physical struggle" with Beard. On Feb. 15, the charges were dropped after Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza reviewed the evidence and took into account Trew's wishes not to prosecute Beard.

Ole Miss fired Kermit Davis on Feb. 24.