In the latest episode of the “Hear It From Harlan” podcast produced by the University of Utah, Utah athletic director Mark Harlan addressed the coaching situation for the Utes’ men’s basketball program.
The episode, which went live Tuesday and was recorded Monday, came one week after Utah had parted ways with former Runnin’ Utes head coach Craig Smith.
Harlan talked about Smith’s contributions to the university during his time there, the timeline for finding his replacement and what Harlan is looking for in Utah’s next head coach.
What Mark Harlan said about the timing of Craig Smith’s dismissal
The announcement that Utah was making a leadership change for its men’s basketball program came less than 24 hours after the Runnin’ Utes had lost on the road at UCF on Sunday, Feb. 23.
Smith ended up with a 65-62 record as Utah’s coach.
While he saw incremental improvement of his record until this season, when the Utes joined the Big 12, his teams went 15-43 on the road and in neutral settings over his tenure, a symbol of the inconsistency that hurt Utah over the past four seasons despite some solid wins.
Harlan praised Smith for the energy and passion he brought to the Utah job, as well as the talent he was able to get to play in Salt Lake City. Previously, Smith had been the head coach at Utah State for three seasons and taken the Aggies to two NCAA tournaments.
“You know, first of all, Craig Smith is a great man, and his energy and passion for the time that he was here was greatly appreciated. He brought in some really good young men to the program that have really leaned in on being Utes,” Harlan told podcast host Bill Riley.
Smith was fired with four games left in the regular season and just nine days after Utah had beaten then-No. 17 Kansas, which was followed by a victory over Kansas State two days later.
“And it’s a tough time, you know, with any sport, as we manage these changes, but you could argue that men’s basketball is one of the toughest, with well over 50% of the roster changing every year,” Harlan said. “I did a deep evaluation, as I always do with all the sports, and just felt like the time was right for the sake of the program. It’s always about the program the way I look at things, and I felt like it was in our best interest to make a change.”
Assistant coach Josh Eilert is serving as the interim head coach in his place.
Before coming to Utah this season, Eilert spent 17 years at West Virginia and was the Mountaineers’ interim head coach last season.
Harlan pointed to Eilert’s experience, and a veteran Utah squad, as reasons for believing this group could handle an in-season coaching change.
“I felt like we had a really good group of seniors on this team that are mature enough to handle that change at this time of year. Felt like we have Josh Eilert, who’s a very well experienced coach, particularly in this conference, who’s got great respect from the team, along with the rest of the staff,” Harlan said.
“So I felt like they had the maturity to be able to handle that change, which allows us to really dive into the decision-making we have to do, maybe ahead of the end of the regular season. So all of that went into it, but I want to emphasize again that Craig did a lot of work here. I know in some respects, he was picked lower by the media. We certainly understand that they won some really exciting games in his tenure, and I absolutely wish him the very best.”
How is Utah’s search going for a new men’s basketball coach?
Riley asked Harlan about a timeline for when a new hire might come together, and the Utah AD said “we’re definitely off and running.”
On Tuesday morning, national college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported that former Utah star Alex Jensen, who’s been an assistant coach in the NBA for the past decade-plus, has emerged as a “primary candidate” for the Utes’ vacant head coaching position.
That corroborates local reports along those same lines. KSL Sports’ Steve Bartle reported that Utah conducted select interviews for the position through Sunday, then school officials “confirmed Jensen as the top target.”
While Harlan did not set a timeline for when a hire could be announced, he stressed the importance of getting “that leader identified and to get him rolling as soon as possible.”
There have been conflicting reports about whether an offer has officially been extended to Jensen, who played for Utah under Rick Majerus and was part of the Utes’ team that played in the 1998 national championship game.
“This is an incredible institution with proven success,” Harlan said. “... There’s a lot of interest in this job, and I’m not surprised by that. We’ve got some really good folks that we’re engaged with. I like to say my time at UCLA reminds me of the John Wooden quote, ‘Be quick. Just don’t hurry.’
“And I think, we’re going to make some really good decisions. I’ve got great people around me that are working on this. We’re going to find a great leader for this program going forward.”
What characteristics is Mark Harlan looking for in Utah’s next basketball coach?
This is the second time that Harlan has conducted a search for a men’s basketball hire during his time at Utah.
Four years ago, Smith was hired to replace Larry Krystkowiak.
Since that last coaching hire, the college landscape has changed drastically, with name, image and likeness (NIL) money playing a huge role in recruiting.
That changes the way school personnel now conduct coaching searches.
Harlan said he is looking for someone who can not only be a strong leader but can adapt to the modern era of the game — and a lot of that nowadays includes being savvy in finding talent in the transfer portal.
“You always have to have someone that develops talent. It’s just you might not have multiple years to develop that talent. You have to be an intense, maniacal recruiter all over the country, blend high school and have a really good understanding of what kind of transfers that you need to bring in,” Harlan said.
Harlan noted that last year, Utah already took a step in adapting to a new era of college basketball by hiring a general manager for the program in Mike Summey.
As for additional traits he is searching for in a new head basketball coach, Harlan said, “A great person, a solid leader who’s got proven abilities to do that, and someone that understands the importance of Utah basketball to this community and to involve the community in the highest of levels. So all of that is what we’re looking for. It’s not a unicorn. There are people that are very much like that that are very much interested in this possibility. (I) look forward to completing the process and moving forward.”
How the Utah basketball program has responded since the coaching change
Harlan also made sure to share with Riley that he’s been impressed with how the current Utah team has responded to the in-season change.
While the Utes lost by 17 at No. 22 Arizona two days after the coaching change, Utah beat Arizona State by 26 at home last Saturday.
“The guys’ performance on Saturday was awesome,” he said. “You know, they’ve had a tough week. Craig was a great man and they enjoyed playing for him. The way they’ve rallied, the way Josh’s leadership is shining through to get after a team and look that good in so many stats, the way we shared the ball, we didn’t turn over the ball much at all, and it was a great night, and I’m very proud of them.”
