| Cheryl Burnett resigns! |
| Cheryl Burnett, the winningest coach in SMS women's basketball history and the architect of two NCAA Women's Final Four appearances, has resigned her post as the Lady Bears' head coach after 15 seasons and 319 coaching victories. Burnett announced her resignation at a news conference at SMS Monday, April 22. She has not accepted another position at this time but plans to pursue other opportunities in the coaching profession. "This is a very emotional day for me," said Burnett at the news conference. "I am terminating my coaching contract with SMS. I made the decision last Wednesday and we subsequently canceled weekend visits by recruits who were scheduled to come to campus. I told my family yesterday and I told the team today. It was a decision made on principles and prayer and it was a professional decision. This past year has been a year of blessings with a wonderful group of young women. Coaching is what I love and continues to be my passion. I've always thought that I'd leave SMS for a job at another university. I will look back on my time at SMS as priceless. The fans supporting SMS have made it a dreamland. Our coaches have worked incredibly hard and we've been fortunate to have accomplished a great deal." "I have no jobs and no interviews at this time. I'm stepping out on faith," Burnett concluded. SMS president Dr. John Keiser acknowledged Burnett's contributions to the University, commenting, "We appreciate very much what Coach Burnett has accomplished on behalf of the unversity over the past 15 years. Clearly she helped establish the Lady Bears as one of the premier women's basketball programs in the country. We thank her for that and we wish Coach Burnett well in her future endeavors." Director of athletics Bill Rowe noted that a national search would begin immediately to find a new head coach for the SMS program. The three current assistant coaches--Lynette Robinson, Karen Rapier and Scott Norris--remain under contract and Rowe has asked the three of them to supervise the program on an interim basis until a new head coach is hired. "SMS is very saddened by Coach Burnett's decision to leave our program but we very much respect that decision," Rowe said. "She's been a person of great integrity throughout her time at SMS and she demonstrated that again last week with the decision to cancel scheduled recruit visits when she knew she would not be at SMS to coach them. It's impossible to fully measure what she's meant to our university, to SMS intercollegiate athletics and to our women's basketball program but her contributions have been tremendous. The consistency her teams here have demonstrated has put us on the national map and has kept us there, and she's created a program around which our tremendous fans have rallied, making Hammons Student Center an extraordinarily difficult place for a visiting team to come in and play. We hope for nothing but the best for Cheryl and we will be anxiously watching to see where she goes following the decision she has announced today." |
| taken from The Official SMSU Athletics Site |