This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It's been nearly a month since Utah fired women's basketball coach Anthony Levrets, and only the staffs at UConn and Notre Dame can now claim to be too occupied for an interview.
Yet the job remains vacant, so what's the holdup?
Other than indicating that the U. has received abundant interest, athletic director Chris Hill has revealed little to The Tribune about his search.
He said he wants a coach with a history of success — no surprise there — but that he's not concerned about "winning the press conference."
He'd also like to hire somebody who, in the same vein as men's coach Larry Krystkowiak, focuses on changing "the culture" of the program.
And whoever it is needs to be able to recruit well in Utah — another no-brainer, but one that may significantly narrow the field.
Two weeks ago, Hill said Utah was still vetting candidates. Last week, Hill had no updates. Again, Monday, the U. said the search was still on.
Hill would not qualify the extent of interest in the job, but there are a few factors that might make Utah attractive.
For starters, Utah offers apparent potential for a quick turnaround.
The Utes went just 21-40 the last two seasons, but in 2013-14 were without All-Mountain West and All-Pac-12 forward Taryn Wicijowski, due to an ACL tear, and this season lost a handful of players to injury.
The arithmetic next season is that Utah loses Wicijowski, but back into the fold come Emily Potter, Malia Nawahine, Paige Crozon, Katie Kuklok and Devri Owens — all expected starters or rotation players prior to their injuries in 2014-15.
Only point guard Dani Rodriguez and Kuklok — who has a redshirt year available — will be seniors. Freshmen Tanaeya Boclair and Joeseta Fatuesi were thrust into duty this year and showed promise. And Levrets was very high on the potential of incoming Sacramento point guard Erika Bean.
So the cupboard is far from bare.
Utah also offers competitive pay (Levrets earned a salary of $250,000), a decadeslong tradition of success under Levrets predecessor Elaine Elliott, a soon-to-open $36 million basketball facility and a newly renovated arena that feels more intimate when the upper bowl is obscured by black curtains.
On paper, it's all there.
Except the coach.
Twitter: @matthew_piper