On Wednesday, BYU AD Tom Holmoe joined BYU Sports Nation to discuss basketball coach Kevin Young's recent hiring. In the interview, Holmoe talked about the need for succession planning in all sports, and cited soccer as an example. In the interview, Holmoe dropped important information that has long been speculated but never confirmed. That's because Kalani Sitake turned down a competing job offer while at BYU.
“We have a plan for success, so we have to be able to anticipate that we could lose a coach at any time,” Holmoe said. “I’m talking about Coach Kalani. [Sitake], he received offers to go elsewhere, which he turned down. We need to understand that these things are in motion and we have been through them before. ”
Coach Shitake has been involved in various jobs over the past few years. After the 2021 season, BYU achieved back-to-back double-digit win seasons and posted a 20-4 record over two years. When Oregon State coach Mario Cristobal left Oregon State for Miami, Sitake was one of Oregon State's main candidates. Although Holmo wouldn't confirm specifically, Oregon State was likely one of the schools that offered Kalani the job.
Even though BYU went 5-7 last year, retaining Kalani was critical to keeping the program on track heading into the Big 12. BYU is a unique job, and there is no substitute for the BYU-specific experience. BYU needed an experienced coach to lead them to the Big 12. Kalani has proven to be an effective coach with the right coordinator. However, expectations for Kalani will continue to rise. Last year's hope was a bowl game. I'm looking forward to the bowl game this year. Expectations will be even higher next year. This is part of the transition to a Power Five conference. It is important to progress slowly and gradually.
