Reports: Former South Carolina HC Darrin Horn will join Shaka Smart's Texas staff

Former South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Darrin Horn will join Texas Longhorns head coach Shaka Smart's first staff in Austin, according to reports from Scout's Evan Daniels and WDRB's Rick Bozich.

It's the first concrete information to emerge about which three assistants Smart will choose for his bench since the school officially introduced him on Friday as the replacement for Rick Barnes.

Horn and Smart have a relationship that dates back several years, though they haven't ever coached on the same staff together. The major tie that they do have is a shared style of play -- like Smart, Horn's teams are known for playing an exciting style of basketball featuring an up-tempo attack with pressuring defenses and high-octane offenses. Like Smart's VCU teams, Horn's squads were also known for the high-level conditioning required by his preferred strategy.

The two coaches also share an appreciation for academics -- all of Horn's players at Western Kentucky and South Carolina who completed their eligibility earned their degrees.

After a successful stint at Western Kentucky that saw Horn win nearly 70% of his games and take the Hilltoppers to the Sweet Sixteen in 2008, he left for South Carolina and led the team to one of its most successful conference season since joining the SEC, then eventually inked a top-20 recruiting class in 2010.

However, he couldn't repeat his 2008-09 success and was fired in 2012 after missing the postseason for three straight years and compiling a 60-63 record in Columbia. Horn currently works as a television analyst and part-time radio host in his hometown of Lexington.