WATERLOO - According to multiple media outlets Monday night, Drake's Keno Davis is the front-runner to become the next men's basketball coach at Providence.

The Bulldogs were recognized at the statehouse in Des Moines on Monday for their storybook season, but Davis was absent.

FoxSports.com reported that Davis, the Associated Press' National Coach of the Year, was in Providence, R.I., Monday, meeting with the school's administration.

The Providence Journal said on its Web site, barring any breakdown with negotiations, that Davis, 36, could be named the program's next coach as soon as today.

Ironically, Providence athletic director Bob Driscoll wasn't at the team's end-of-the-year banquet Monday night.

"Bob is working on hiring the next coach," school president Rev. Brian J. Shanley told the Journal. "Timing is so important in this process, which we've learned."

Providence was 15-16 overall and 6-12 in the Big East this past season under Tim Welsh. The Friars haven't been to the NCAA tournament since 2004.

Since Welsh's firing, the Friars have had difficulties filling the position. Massachusetts coach Travis Ford and George Mason's Jim Larranaga turned Providence down, while the school reportedly contacted Davidson's Bob McKillop.

"We've talked with some great coaches that we thought would be successful at Providence," Shanley said. "We haven't yet found the right person."

In his first season as a head coach, Davis guided the Bulldogs to a school-record 28-5 mark, along with the Valley's regular-season and postseason tournament titles. Drake was in the NCAA tournament for the first time in 37 years and lost in the first round to Western Kentucky on a last-second shot in overtime.

Davis was born and spent part of his childhood in Massachusetts as his father, Dr. Tom Davis, was coaching at Boston College.

Contact Matt Coss at (319) 291-1468 or matt.coss@wcfcourier.com