Colorado State University fired men’s basketball coach Dale Layer on Monday. Director of Athletics Paul Kowalczyk announced the decision at an afternoon news conference. Layer had one year remaining on his contract.
“After evaluating our men’s basketball program over the past season and seeing where we are today, I felt it is time to move in a different direction,” Kowalczyk said in a prepared statement.
“This was a very difficult decision that came after much thought and evaluation. Dale Layer is a talented person with many outstanding qualities. He and his staff worked diligently on behalf of the program.”
Kowalczyk said he will immediately initiate a national search for Layer’s replacement.
“The goal is to find the best person for this position,” Kowalczyk said. “We will exhaust every effort to find that individual as quickly as possible. But we will not sacrifice finding a quality coach for our program for the sake of expediency.”
Layer was 103-106 overall in seven seasons and 31-71 record in Mountain West Conference play.
Colorado State was 17-13 this past season, sixth in the league, and lost in the semifinals of the MWC tournament last weekend.
Layer released a statement after being informed he was not being brought back.
“It has indeed been an honor and a privilege to serve as head coach at Colorado State for the past seven years. I have great memories and have made countless friends. My staff and I have worked extremely hard to represent CSU in a positive manner. I greatly appreciate the opportunity and will always be a Ram at heart.”
The next coach inherits a veteran squad. CSU brings back five players with starting experience and four potential starting seniors. The key will be whether likely All-America candidate Jason Smith, the MWC rebounding champion, returns for his senior season.
