LARAMIE, Wyo. — As Allen Edwards worked his way through 13 seasons of being an assistant coach, including the past five seasons at Wyoming, he built a vision of how he would run a basketball program if he ever got a head coaching opportunity.
He didn’t know where or when the opportunity might come, but he wanted to be prepared.
As it turned out, he almost was sitting on top of his big chance.
During an interview this week, Edwards laughed when told he had moved about 25 feet from his office as an assistant at Wyoming to the head coaching spot. He’s been on the job in his new office about two weeks, having replaced Larry Shyatt, who stepped away at season’s end.
“I’m excited,” Edwards said. “I’ve been repairing myself to be a head coach for several years. I think it’s important to know what you want to do when your opportunity comes along. Knowing the lay of the land as I do here really helps.”
Wyoming athletic director Tom Burman mentioned the importance of continuity when naming Edwards.
“An institution is fortunate when it has the opportunity to hire its next coach from within,” Burman said. “During his five years here, his impact on our program has been significant.”
Edwards, 39, has a strong basketball pedigree. He played at Kentucky and the Wildcats made it to the Final Four in three consecutive years during his time there, including winning the national championship in 1996 and 1998.
“I’m big on tradition,” Edwards said. “I feel the same way about the program here as I do about the program at Kentucky.”
Wyoming has won 16 conference championships, including the Mountain West title two years ago, when it qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Edwards grew up in Miami and his wife LaTanya, an all-conference volleyball player at Kentucky, grew up in Detroit. They have found a new home in Laramie.
“Laramie grows on you,” Edwards said. “We wanted a smaller and slower paced city to raise our family. I want to keep my mind open about what activities to try. I’m not a fisherman, but I’m intrigued about skiing, but we’ll see.”
As for on-court issues, Edwards would like to add a ball handling guard with the one remaining scholarships he has.
He loses Josh Adams, the conference player of the year and Wyoming’s only senior. But he believes he has a strong nucleus coming back.
As for his style as a head coach, Edwards said, “I know I’ll encourage our players. As for the officials I don’t know, but I don’t want to be looked at as a pushover. As for being the head coach, I know the buck stops with me.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296, imoss@denverpost.com or @irvmoss
