It took six days from the time news broke that Chris Burgess would be leaving BYU to become a men’s basketball assistant coach at Utah, but things finally became official on Tuesday.
About four hours after Utah announced the hire Tuesday afternoon, Burgess posted a letter on Twitter in which he thanked a number of people at BYU.
Addressing the letter to “Cougar Nation,” Burgess wrote that “BYU holds a special place in my heart as one of the great experiences of my career. I am forever grateful for the opportunity afforded to me to be part of such a great university, culture and basketball program.”
Burgess then first thanked Cougars head coach Mark Pope, who hired him as an assistant at UVU in 2015 and then brought him to BYU when he was hired in 2019.
Next were former fellow Cougar assistants Cody Fueger and Nick Robinson, followed by BYU basketball support staffers Bobby Horodyski, Keegan Brown, Erick Shork, Rob Ramos “and the BYU athletic department as a whole.”
Burgess next thanked Cougar fans and especially the Roar of Cougars student section, writing that “I have worn my BYU colors with pride for these past three years and will miss the roar of the ROC!”
Lastly, Burgess thanked the players he has coached, writing, “I expect great things and I look forward to seeing what your future has in store.”
With Burgess officially hired at Utah, the search for his replacement at BYU can now formally begin as the Cougars deal with a rather large exodus that has now seen six players from the 2021-22 team announce intentions to enter the transfer portal after Gavin Baxter did so late Tuesday afternoon.