Support Staff

In his first year on the job, he added a third fulltime member of the mental health team, serving student-athletes in the areas of psychology, wellness, and mental performance.

Harlan has also overseen the continued development of the Ute Academy, which focuses on four pillars of student-athlete success: Leadership, Career, Personal and Community Service, and increased investment in the studentathlete U.T.A.H. Group (United Together Against Hate), which focuses on issues of racial and social injustice.

In June 2021, the Utah Athletics Department launched the student-athlete NIL program “Elevate U” to support Utah’s student-athletes as they maximize their NIL opportunities under new NCAA legislation, in partnership with Utah’s world-class Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute and the David S. Eccles School of Business. The program continues to expand and increase the scope of Utah’s NIL infrastructure through strategic partnerships with industry-leading providers INFLCR, The Brandr Group and Campus Legends, among others. The most recent addition to the program was the launch of the Elevate U Exchange, in partnership with INFLCR, in June 2022, to create an NIL marketplace for Utah’s student-athletes and interested businesses, collectives and individuals.

Entering the 2023-23 school year, seven of Utah’s head coaches have been hired by Harlan in his time on The Hill. In addition to Landstedt, he has hired Ric Mortera (women’s tennis), Craig Smith (men’s basketball), Gary Henderson (baseball), Hideki Nakada (women’s soccer) and Andrew McMinn (lacrosse). In the spring of 2022, he promoted Jonas Persson to serve as the Utes’ head swimming and diving coach.

Harlan has significantly upgraded the strength and appeal of Utah’s future football schedules with the addition of eight games—four home-and-home series—against SEC and Big Ten opponents. Florida (2022, ’23), Arkansas (2026, ’29), Wisconsin (2028, ’33) and LSU (2031, ’32) each will visit Salt Lake City, as well as host the Utes, over the next 12 seasons.

Harlan has been named to several influential committees throughout his career, and is currently serving on the NCAA Division I Football Oversight Committee. He also has held a lead role in the Pac-12 Conference Football Working Group and has served as the AD liaison to the league’s football coaches in navigating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous to that appointment, he also served on the NCAA Division I Council Transfer Working Group and the NCAA Division I Competition Oversight Committee.

Prior to his arrival in Salt Lake City, Harlan spent four years as the Director of Athletics at South Florida, where he spearheaded record competitive, academic and fundraising accomplishments while also negotiating new multimedia rights and apparel partnerships. The Bulls won 14 American Athletic Conference titles under his leadership and nine USF programs ranked in the Top 25 in 2015-16, when the Bulls led the AAC in the Learfield Directors’ Cup standings.

The Bulls’ football program appeared in three consecutive bowl games from 2015-17 and surged to a 21-4 record in his last two years, including a school-record 11 wins in 2016. The Bulls defeated bowl opponents from the SEC and Big 12 in 2016 (South Carolina) and 2017 (Texas Tech), and USF appeared in the final AP poll for the first time in 2016, when it ranked 19th in both the AP and Coaches’ polls. Broadbased national success for USF Athletics under Harlan also included five programs earning NCAA Championships berths, including four NCAA Tournament appearances by the women’s basketball program and three by women’s soccer. Six Bulls teams earned Top-25 rankings during Harlan’s tenure.

In the classroom, USF student-athletes set school marks for combined grade-point average and Graduation Success Rate (GSR).

Under Harlan’s guidance, USF Athletics saw a 300 percent increase in major giving and had the best fundraising year in school history in 2016-17, attracting $15 million. His announcement of plans for a new $40-million on-campus football center was soon followed by an $8 million gift to athletics—the largest in program history.

He chaired the American Athletic Conference Athletic Directors Committee in 201718, and was appointed vice chair in 2016, playing a key role in developing the conference’s strategic plan. As a former member of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission Executive Committee, Harlan assisted in bringing major events to Tampa Bay including the CFP National Championship, NCAA Women’s Final Four and NHL All-Star Game.

From 2010-14, Harlan served as senior associate athletics director for external relations at UCLA, with oversight responsibilities including the men’s basketball program, development, communications, marketing, ticket sales, sponsorships, multimedia rights and alumni affairs.

While at UCLA, Harlan reorganized the structure of the major giving program and the annual fund, which resulted in a record number of donors and dollars raised in 2013. He successfully managed completion of a $137 million campaign to renovate iconic Pauley Pavilion in 2012. Harlan was also heavily involved in the negotiations with the City of Pasadena to enable a $200 million renovation of the Rose Bowl Stadium.

Harlan left for UCLA after four years as the senior vice president for central development at the University of Arizona Foundation from 2006-10. Under Harlan’s direction, the Foundation posted two record years in the amount of funds raised and in the number of gifts processed on behalf of the university. He moved into central development at Arizona after over a decade working in the Wildcat athletic department. He held a variety of roles in athletics, serving as the assistant coordinator for football recruiting and operations (1992-94), program coordinator for event management (199497), director of operations (1997-2000), director of annual development (2000-02) and assistant athletics director for development and marketing (2002-04).

Harlan’s background also includes one-year stints as senior associate athletics director for external operations at San Jose State (2005-06) and associate athletics director for external operations at Northern Colorado (2004-05). At SJSU, he launched a planned giving program that generated $8 million in estate gifts directed toward student-athlete scholarship endowments. At Northern Colorado, he played a key role in the school’s transition to NCAA Division I and the Big Sky Conference.

Harlan, 52, earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in education from the University of Arizona. He and his wife, Carolyn, have two children: Savannah (17) and Austin (14) and Cali the Labradoodle (8).

HEAD COACH | 2ND YEAR

Craig Smith is in his second season at the head coach of the Runnin’ Utes.

In his first season on The Hill, Smith saw big man Branden Carlson earn All-Pac-12 SecondTeam honors while Lazar Stefanovic garnered Pac-12 All-Freshman Team accolades. The veteran head coach saw the Utes start the year with fivestraight victories – including the Sunshine Slam Tournament Championship behind a 72-58 victory over Tulsa in the title game.

Smith came to Salt Lake City with some familiarity, having served as the head coach at Utah State the past three seasons up in Logan. The veteran head coach takes the helm of his third Division I program after leading both South Dakota and Utah State to multiple postseason tournament appearances.

During his time in Logan, Smith compiled a 74-24 record with the Aggies while leading USU to three-consecutive 20-plus win seasons, two Mountain West Conference Tournament Championships (2019, 2020) and a regularseason championship.

In 25 years of collegiate coaching experience, including 10 as a head coach, Smith has been to postseason play 13 times, while winning four regular-season and four postseason conference championships. He has earned four conference coach of the year awards (2006, 2007, 2017, 2019) in three different conferences and was named NAIA II National Coach of the Year Award in 2007, the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) District 12 Coach of the Year Award in 2017, and NABC District 17 Coach of the Year and USBWA District VIII Coach of the Year in 2019.

Smith saw immediate success in his first season at USU, leading it to an overall record of 28-7 – which was the most wins by a first-year head coach at USU and third-most wins overall in school history. The Aggies earned a spot in the Big Dance his first season after capturing the conference tournament crown and earned the No. 8 seed – which was the highest in program history.

His second year in Logan saw much of the same success, again winning the conference tournament and was just 1-of-12 programs to clinch a spot in the NCAA Tournament before it was canceled due to COVID-19.

In a season unlike any other, Smith led the Aggies to their 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance in 2020-21 with an at-large berth after finishing second in the MWC with a 20-9 overall record – which earned it the 11 seed.

The Aggies thrived under the direction of Smith with Sam Merrill becoming the first player in MWC history to garner back-to-back conference tournament MVP honors. Merrill also went on to collect two First-Team All-MWC selections and a 2019 AP All-America Honorable Mention nod.

Neemias Queta also saw success at Utah State, collecting freshman of the year honors and defensive player of the year accolades at the end of the 2019 campaign. In addition, he was a three-time all-conference and all-defensive team selection. He had a breakout junior season, collecting a host of honors including, MWC Player of the Year (media), MWC Defensive Player of the Year, First-Team All-MWC, AP Honorable Mention All-America, USBWA/NABC All-District Team, all-tournament team and Bleacher Report’s Defensive Player of the Year.

Prior to taking over the Utah State program, Smith spent four seasons (2015-18) at South Dakota and led the Coyotes to a 79-55 (.590) overall mark – including a 38-26 (.594) record in Summit League action. Smith guided USD to back-to-back postseason appearances in his final two season in Vermillion, S.D.

In his final season at USD, Smith led the Coyotes to a 26-9 record and CBI appearance. The 26-9 overall mark was the second-most wins in school history and best record in the program’s 10-year existence at the Division I level. That 201718 team did not lose back-to-back games in the regular-season.

The 2016-17 season saw South Dakota go 22-12 overall and 12-4 in league play – which earned it a spot in the NIT. Smith was named the NABC District 12 Coach of the Year for his efforts after leading USD to just its second Division I conference championship.

Overall, Smith guided nine players who totaled 11 all-conference accolades – including Matt Mooney, a two-time first-team all-conference honoree and two-time NABC All-District 12 recipient.

Smith spent two seasons (2012-14) at Nebraska as an assistant coach after spending five seasons as an assistant at Colorado State (2007-12). During his time as an assistant, Smith was part of two NCAA Tournament runs, guiding

CSU to the Big Dance in 2012 and then the Cornhuskers in 2014.

Smith also served as the head coach at NAIA Mayville State from 2005-07, posting a 7229 record and led them to the NAIA II National Tournament each year. He inherited a team that went 1-25 the previous season and led the Comets to the NAIA National Championship in his final season before departing for Colorado State. Smith was named the NAIA II National Coach of the Year when the Comets defended their regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the National Championship game in 2007. It also marked the first time any men’s basketball team from North Dakota had ever played for a national title. Smith also earned DAC Coach of the Year honors in both 2006 and 2007.

He began his coaching career at Mayville State his first year out of college in 1997 before taking a graduate assistant position at Northern State the year after, and helped the Wolves advance to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division II Tournament. Smith stayed within the Big Sky footprint and was as an assistant at Minot State from 1999-2001 before serving as an assistant coach under Tim Miles at North Dakota State (2002-04) – with whom he would later work at Colorado State and Nebraska.

Smith is a Stephen, Minn., native and a 1996 graduate of the University of North Dakota, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in secondary education. He then earned his master’s degree in teaching and learning from Northern State while he was a graduate assistant.

He was honored by the University of North Dakota with the Tom Clifford Award, which recognizes UND alumni who serve as athletic coaches on the high school or college level and have been notably successful in their sport the preceding year on Oct. 1, 2021.

Smith and his wife, Darcy, have three sons: Landon, Brady and Carson, and a daughter, Lauren.

SMITH’S COACHING CAREER

Years School Position

2021- Utah 2018-21 Utah State 2014-18 South Dakota 2012-14 Nebraska Head Coach Head Coach Head Coach Assistant Coach

2008-12 Colorado State Assistant Coach

2007-8 Colorado State

Director of Basketball Operations 2004-07 Mayville State Head Coach 2001-04 North Dakota State Assistant Coach 1998-2001 Minot State Assistant Coach 1997-98 Northern State Graduate Assistant 1996-97 Mayville State Assistant Coach

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Chris Burgess

Assistant Coach

Chris Burgess returns home to his alma mater and begins his first year as an assistant coach with the Runnin’ Utes in April of 2021.

No stranger to the U, Burgess spent the last seven seasons alongside Mark Pope at BYU and Utah Valley where he helped guide the Cougars to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2021 and first since 2015 as the No. 6 seed. During that season, the Cougs ranked in the top25 in defensive rebounds per game (5th, 29.7), rebounding margin (22nd, +6.7) and rebounds per game (25th, 39.19). Burgess also helped Matt Haarms become the first player in program history to earn WCC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2020-21.

The 2021-22 campaign saw the team down south finish 24-11 overall with a signature win over then-No. 12 Oregon with a trio of victories over NCAA Tournament teams. The Cougars also earned an NIT bid and advanced to the quarterfinals.

His first season in Provo saw the Cougars finish 24-8 overall with a final national ranking of #18/16 after the remainder of the season was shut down due to COVID-19. BYU saw three players earn All-WCC First-Team honors that season while the team led the nation in 3-point field-goal percentage (.422), second in assists/turnover ratio (1.57), third in field-goal percentage (.500) and fourth in total assists (556).

Burgess and Pope first linked up at Utah Valley when he joined Pope’s staff in 2015. In his four seasons at UVU, the Wolverines went from a 12-win team his first year to a program record 25 wins in 2018-19. UVU saw plenty of success with Burgess on staff, recording back-to-back 20-win seasons from 2017-19 while also making threeconsecutive postseason appearances (2017-19).

His development of post players saw Akolda Manyang named a WAC All-Defensive Team honoree in 2017-18 while Wyatt Lowell earned WAC Freshman of the Year in 2019.

Offensively, the Wolverines rewrote the school record books taking up the top-four spots in scoring average category led by a 78.1 scoring average in 2017-18. UVU also posted four of the top-five spots in the 3-point field goals made category – including a program best 300-made triples in 2016-17.

Burgess played two seasons under the late legendary head coach Rick Majerus from 2000-02 after sitting out the 1999-2000 due to NCAA transfer rules. The former No. 1 recruit in the country and McDonald’s All-American out of Woodbridge High School started his collegiate career at Duke (1997-99) playing for hall of famer and now former head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

While in Durham, Burgess helped the Blue Devils to an Elite Eight run his freshman season (1998) before taking Duke to the National Championship game in 1999. After a solid start to his senior year on The Hill, Burgess tore his right plantar fascia vs. Texas, forcing him to miss the remainder of the year. At the point of his injury, Burgess was leading the Utes with 13.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.2 blocks, and a .667 shooting clip while averaging 25.5 minutes a game. He finished his career at Utah guiding the Runnin’ Utes to an NIT appearance in 2001 and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2002.

Burgess then went on to have an 11-year professional career in Turkey, Australia, the Philippines, South Korea, Ukraine, Puerto Rico, Poland and the UAE.

After hanging up his laces, Burgess returned return to The Hill in 2013-14 and earned his undergraduate degree in speech communications while serving as a student assistant under former head coach Larry Krystkowiak.

He went on as a volunteer assistant coach at Salt Lake Community College in 2014 and then took the assistant coach job at Indian Hills Community College (2014-15) before joining Mark Pope’s staff at Utah Valley (2015-19).

Burgess is married to his wife Lesa, a former Utah soccer player. They have three daughters, Kelli Jo “KJ”, Zoey and Ava as well as two boys, Beckham and Zachary. Daughter KJ, who was a second-team AVCA High School All-American, is currently a freshman middle blocker on the Utah Volleyball team.

Tim Morris

Assistant Coach

Tim Morris enters his second season as an assistant coach with the Utah men’s program in 2022-23 as member of Craig Smith’s staff.

Morris’ first season with the Runnin’ Utes saw success early on as Utah opened the 2021-22 campaign 5-0 that was capped off by a Sunshine Slam Tournament championship. Working mainly with the guards, Morris helped Lazar Stefanovic earn Pac-12 All-Freshman Team honors at the end of the year.

Silver Waves Media once again recognized Morris’ abilities and named him to their most impactful high major assistant coaches list in May of 2022.

Morris spent the last two seasons at Cincinnati under John Brannen. In his first season with the Bearcats, the team went 20-10 with a 13-5 conference record and earned the top-seed in the American Athletic Conference Tournament before COVID-19 shut everything down. UC then made it to the AAC Tournament title game this past season before falling to eventual Final Four participant, Houston. Morris then served as