BYU assistant coach Chris Burgess is expected to leave Provo for the same position at the University of Utah, multiple sources confirmed to The Salt Lake Tribune.
Burgess has been an assistant at BYU since 2019, when current head coach Mark Pope was hired. Prior to that, Burgess was an assistant under Pope at Utah Valley University for four seasons.
The Utes and Burgess had been in discussions for some time but agreed to a deal in principle on Tuesday, according to a source. A formal announcement was expected as soon as Wednesday.
The 42-year-old has deep ties to Utah, dating back to when he played for the program in 2001-02 under the late, legendary head coach Rick Majerus. As a player, Burgess helped Utah make an NCAA Tournament appearance and an NIT berth.
After a professional career overseas, he came back to Utah as a graduate assistant in 2013-14. His daughter also currently attends the school.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) BYU coach Mark Pope and his staff coach against San Diego State in November of 2021. Cougars assistant Chris Burgess, top back left, is expected to leave BYU for the same position at the University of Utah, according to sources.
Utah head coach Craig Smith has been attempting to replace his own long-time assistant in Eric Peterson. In that search, it has been a priority to have someone with ties to Utah.
As Smith tries to dig the Utes out of a 20-loss season in his first campaign, Burgess’ addition to his bench offers a shot of promise. A Provo native, Burgess is considered one of the state’s top recruiters, and a respected recruiter in the West.
Smith’s bench staff now appears set with Burgess joining DeMarlo Slocum and Tim Morris, both of whom were on staff last season under Smith.
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