Boulder – Wisconsin-Green Bay coach Kevin Borseth stunned University of Colorado officials Thursday by walking away from his new job three hours before he was scheduled to step to the podium as the Buffaloes’ new coach, citing concerns about uprooting his family.
But the post Borseth turned down at CU is an even better job today – at least that is the attitude the search committee charged with finding a women’s basketball coach is going back to work with.
A last-minute rejection by the No. 1 candidate does not make the job less attractive, said former coach Ceal Barry, now an associate athletic director and a major force on the search committee.
“Since I’ve been here 22 years, I think it’s very attractive, and I think it’s even more attractive with our new athletic director,’ Barry said. “The enthusiasm, excitement, optimism, all those things that any coach needs.
“A coach needs some energy. It’s a hard job. It’s going to be a much better situation for somebody to be connected with Mike Bohn.’
Bohn, who grew up in Boulder and was named athletic director less than 24 hours earlier, agreed.
“This is a great opportunity for someone else to be a part of something special,’ Bohn said. “Now we have to go find another high-quality person that’s the right fit. This could end up being a great thing for both Kevin and the university.’
It was after a long, late-night talk with his wife, Connie, and waking up with a knot in his stomach that Borseth, 50, changed his mind.
He called committee chair Karen Morrison and invited her to his hotel room for coffee Thursday morning.
“I was very surprised,’ Morrison said. “I thought they were happy with everything we presented to them. Happy with the community. I think they had a little sticker shock when they looked at our real estate prices, but otherwise I thought they were doing pretty good. When he met with the team (Wednesday night), I heard a lot of giggling, so that sounded like it was going right.
“I was supposed to pick him up (Thursday) morning to meet with Mike for a little bit, and he wasn’t dressed up, and I thought, ‘Uh oh, he’s changed his mind.”
Borseth, in town since Monday, explained his change of heart in a conference call to reporters.
“First of all, please understand that I had every intention of coming here to take this job,’ he said. “But after coming here, a harsh reality set in that trying to balance my commitment to the university and the time raising my children the way I envisioned, just wouldn’t work.
“I just didn’t have the right gut feeling that I wanted to have.’
Borseth and his wife have five children, aged 10 and younger. Both sets of grandparents live within two hours of Green Bay.
Borseth said he would like to finish his career at the school where he’s won six Horizon League championships in seven years and which has become home to him.
“Green Bay had kind of adopted me as, I don’t know, maybe their favorite son,’ Borseth said. “But they have adopted me, totally.’
Morrison said she hadn’t tossed any phone numbers, and that she and Barry started making calls to other candidates as soon as the shock wore off.
“I think having Mike on board is going to make a huge difference,’ Morrison said.
Bohn, who a day earlier expressed regret at not being able to help in the search, said Thursday he plans to be “right in the middle of it’ with Barry and Morrison, but would not rush into a decision.
“There’s no race,’ he said. “I felt like there was a real push prior to my arrival, and I understand some of the reasons for that. But I think right now, it’s more important that we create an environment where the coaching pool can feel really good about what we’re doing. It’s an important hire for this institition and for me.’
Bohn also agreed with Barry and Morrison that the requirements be opened up to include assistant coaches, dropping a previous requirement of five years’ experience as a head coach.
“We need to get the right coach for a long-term fit,’ said Barry. “I think the thing in hiring that you don’t want to get into is turnover, turnover every five years. We don’t want that. I think we should not exclude a highly successful assistant coach, a high school coach or a WNBA coach. I think the first thing you want is the right person. The experience will come.’
Staff writer Joseph Sanchez can be reached at 303 820-5458 or jsanchez@denverpost.com.
