When BYU coach Mark Pope became the head coach at Utah Valley University in 2015, he hired Chris Burgess as an assistant.
Pope and Burgess spent the next seven seasons together, including the last three at BYU, with remarkable results, including a 68-26 record.
In April, Burgess decided to leave the Cougars to return to Utah, his alma mater, for an assistant coaching position under Craig Smith.
So how does Pope feel about Burgess leaving for the Utes?
“I’m so happy. That’s what I want for all my guys on this staff. I have four principles that I think about when hiring. One of them is that I want my guys to be really hungry to be head coaches,” Pope said last Friday. “The real principle is, I want my guys to be successful in this business. For Chris to have the opportunity to go back to Utah, where, I mean, he gave his whole heart to Utah Valley and he gave his whole heart to BYU. But his whole heart, if you ask him … it’s Utah. He’s a Utah alum. It means something to him. I think he thinks he can help that program. When my guys find a step that they’re excited about, I’m excited for them.”
And the move is a good thing for BYU, too, Pope said.
Last week, Pope announced the hiring of Kahil Fennell, who spent the past four years at Louisville. Fennell fills out Pope’s staff, which also includes Cody Fueger and Nick Robinson.
“It’s important for a staff, too. I wear on guys on purpose. Freshness in a staff is incredibly important,” Pope said. “The opportunity we have right now to reinvent ourselves is really, really important. This is a huge win for (Burgess) and it’s a massive win for us. And that’s the way that this is supposed to work.”
Pope is looking forward to both Robinson and Fueger receiving new opportunities at some point as well.
“Coach Robinson and coach Fueger are a phone call away from going to be head coaches,” he said. “And I’m going to be the happiest person in the world when that happens because that’s the way this is supposed to work. They’re giving their whole heart to BYU while they’re here and when they have a chance to move on, they’re going to move on.”
Pope added that he feels the same way with his players when they have a chance to play professionally.
“There’s nobody that’s going to be happier than me. That’s the whole point. That’s why we’re here, guys. We’re going to win games — that’s what we do,” he said. “We’re not going to accept anything less than that. But the real beauty of this is these coaches and these young men getting to grow. That’s what’s so exciting. The move for Burg is super exciting and I’m super happy for him. I’m really proud of it.”