Navy announced Wednesday morning that Ed DeChellis has retired after 14 years as men’s basketball coach. Athletic director Chet Gladchuk announced a national search to find his replacement.

Whoever is hired will become the 20th coach in program history and only the 10th since 1926. DeChellis was third-longest tenured coach in school history behind John Wilson and Ben Carnevale, both of whom enjoyed 20-year tenures.

Here’s a look at who could be in the mix to be Navy’s next men’s basketball coach:

Doug Wojcik, Michigan State associate head coach: Many Navy basketball fans and academy alumni think it’s a foregone conclusion that Wojcik will be the program’s next coach.

It makes sense on a lot of levels.

Wojcik is one of Navy’s all-time basketball greats, the starting point guard for the NCAA Tournament teams during the David Robinson era. He served as an assistant coach at Navy from 1990 to 1998 under Don DeVoe.

Wojcik is in his seventh season as an assistant at Michigan State under legendary coach Tom Izzo. He was just presented with the Howard Moore Award as Big Ten Conference Assistant Coach of the Year.

Wojcik has previous head coaching experience, having won 178 games in nine years at Tulsa and College of Charleston. He led Tulsa to four straight 20-win seasons and two NIT appearances.

Wojcik previously spent two years at Michigan State as associate head coach and was part of the staff of the 2005 Final Four team. He has also been an assistant at Notre Dame, North Carolina, Gonzaga and East Carolina.

Wojcik, a 1987 Naval Academy graduate, would no doubt jump at the chance to return to his alma mater as coach.

Mike Brey, former Notre Dame coach: Brey, who is currently an assistant with the Atlanta Hawks, is believed to have an interest in Navy. He is a Maryland native and played high school basketball at DeMatha Catholic under the legendary Morgan Wootten.

Brey played college basketball at George Washington before returning to DeMatha as an assistant from 1982 to 1987. He served as an assistant at Duke under Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski from 1987 to 1995.

Brey initially became coach at Delaware, which he led to a 99-51 record over five seasons. He replaced Matt Doherty at Notre Dame and enjoyed a successful 22-year tenure.

Brey compiled a 483-280 record at Notre Dame, surpassing Digger Phelps as the all-time winningest coach in program history. He led the Fighting Irish to the 2015 Atlantic Coast Conference championship and 13 NCAA Tournament appearances.

Notre Dame had 19 seasons with 20 wins or more under Brey and reached the Elite Eight in 2015 and 2016.

Having coached at a high academy institution such as Notre Dame and his local ties within Maryland make Brey a logical candidate. Age might be an issue as Brey is about to turn 66.

Steve Wojciechowski, Salt Lake City Stars coach: Wojciechowski is currently coaching the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League. The Severna Park native previously spent seven seasons as the coach at Marquette.

Wojciechowski played high school basketball at Cardinal Gibbons under the late Ray Mullis then played at Duke under Krzyzewski. He got into coaching as an assistant at Duke and was on the bench with Krzyzewski from 1999 to 2014.

Wojciechowski compiled a 124-93 record at Marquette from 2014 to 2021. He led the Golden Eagles to two NCAA Tournament appearances.

Wojciechowski, who is in the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame, would no doubt love a second chance to serve as a Division I coach so close to where he grew up.

Jon Perry, Navy interim coach: If Gladchuk chooses continuity, he could simply promote Perry, who was named interim coach on Wednesday.

Perry just completed his 12th season on the Navy staff and held the title of associate head coach. He has spent 23 seasons either playing for or coaching with DeChellis.

Perry played for DeChellis at East Tennessee State and then joined his staff at Penn State, first as video coordinator and then as director of basketball operations. He was with the Nittany Lions from 2004 through 2010.

Perry has been at Navy since 2013 and has played a key role in developing the offensive game plan while also serving as recruiting coordinator.

Emmett Davis, Navy associate head coach: Davis is another in-house candidate who would make sense, especially considering he has head coaching experience and knows the Patriot League well.

Davis led Colgate from 1998 to 2011 and became the program’s all-time winningest coach. He coached the Raiders to 165 wins and a berth in the 2008 Patriot League Tournament final.

Davis previously served as a Navy assistant from 1986 to 1998 under DeVoe before being an assistant at Tulsa under Wojcik.

John Krikorian, Christopher Newport coach: Krikorian was a Navy assistant under Billy Lange from 2004 through 2006 then later enjoyed a successful four-year stint as coach at the Merchant Marine Academy.

Krikorian has been the coach at Christopher Newport for 14 seasons and has compiled a sterling record of 324-88 (.776). He has led the Captains to three NCAA Division III Final Four appearances.

Christopher Newport captured the Division III national championship in 2023 and Krikorian was named Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.

Joe Burke, Skidmore coach: Burke is another former Navy assistant under Lange, having spent six seasons in Annapolis.

Burke has been the coach at Skidmore College since 2010 and enjoyed tremendous success. He has led the Thoroughbreds to five Liberty League championships and six Division III NCAA Tournament appearances.

Have a news tip? Contact Bill Wagner at bwagner@capgaznews.com, 443-534-0102 and x.com/@BWagner_CapGaz.