After helping lead Florida back to the Elite Eight, Larry Shyatt is returning to his former home.
Shyatt, the associate head coach under Billy Donovan, signed a five-year deal Thursday to become the coach at Wyoming, where he held his first head coaching job in 1997-98. According to the Casper Star-Tribune, Shyatt’s contract is worth more than $700,000 per season, plus incentives.
“I’ve spent seven great years at the University of Florida helping to build a championship-caliber program, and this is one of the only places I would have considered leaving for,” Shyatt said in a statement. “I’m excited about the commitment of the administration, and the passionate fan base I remember at Wyoming, and I can’t wait to meet, work with and develop a great relationship with the current team.”
Shyatt went 19-9 with the Cowboys in 1997-98 before accepting a head coaching job at Clemson, where he worked until 2003.
He then joined Donovan at UF, winning back-to-back national championships as an assistant before becoming the associate head coach in 2007.
The 59-year-old Shyatt has been coaching college basketball since 1975, when he served as an assistant at Utah, and he was Donovan’s longest-tenured assistant at UF.
“For me personally there’s both an excitement and sadness,” Donovan said in a statement. “Larry is one of my closest friends, and his impact here at Florida over the last seven years has been immeasurable.
“He’s one of the great minds in basketball and he deserves this opportunity.”
