Mark Harlan announcement of Krystkowiak Termination

Just received this e-mail:

Dear Utah Athletics Family:

One of the most difficult decisions an athletics director makes is the decision to change leadership in one of our sports programs. Intercollegiate athletics is an environment where deep personal relationships are developed as we work together to support our student-athletes, and the Utah Athletics family exemplifies this in the sense of family that we share. When a change is made, it impacts everybody in some way.

I want to share with you today that I have informed Larry Krystkowiak that I am making a change in the leadership of our men’s basketball program. This decision comes after a thorough evaluation of the program—both on and off of the court—as I do with every head coach at the conclusion of their seasons. It was my ultimate conclusion that our program needs a new voice, a new vision and a new leader who can build upon Larry’s foundation and lead us to greater heights in the years ahead.

As many of you know well, and have experienced first-hand, Larry has always been dedicated to our student-athletes, to our University and to the Salt Lake City community, and I am grateful for his decade of service to the University of Utah. In addition, he and Jan have been incredibly generous in supporting University and community initiatives. I want to wish Larry, Jan and their family the very best going forward.

I have already begun the process to identify and hire a new head coach for our men’s basketball program. As you all know, this is a special place with tremendous resources and people, and I have no doubt this will be an incredibly attractive position to a dynamic leader who will put our student-athletes first, who will support their academic pursuits, who will lead us to Pac-12 championships and deep runs in the NCAA Tournament, and whose vision and values align with those of our department and University.

Sincerely,

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Mark Harlan

Wow. Guess we were not the only ones. While I really liked K3, he is a very good man, yet this move is best for Utah basketball. Obviously, Harlan has a tough task in front of him.

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