CHARLOTTSVILLE (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – The new UVA basketball head coach, who was here as a ball boy from 1982 to 1989, said he and his family couldn’t be more “excited to come home.” UVA Athletics Director Carla Williams formally introduced Ryan Odom as the men’s basketball program’s 13th head coach. Williams said a foundational goal that has guided every decision along the way is “winning championships.”

Odom also shared that he met with current players two nights earlier. “What I’ve encouraged these guys is to be themselves,” he said. “To have conversations, work out with our staff. They have to figure out what’s best for them. There is no judgement. It is challenging to have a coaching change.”

Speaking about former coach Tony Bennett, Odom said, “We are all in awe of him, the man that he is, the coach that he is.” He said he is already talking to Bennett and has a good relationship working with him.

He added, “This is the place that I fell in love with basketball.”

“Thank you, President Ryan and Carla Williams, thank you for the way that you handled this entire process, the respect that you gave it,” Odom said. “There are many folks in our business that could be standing right here, and I appreciate the opportunity to be the one to do it. I’m humbled to be here.”

Reflecting on the hiring process, Odom said, “I can’t thank Carla enough, President Ryan enough, for that meeting that we had that day. It was evident to me that this was going to be the right place for me. We all have, you know, times in our life where you know, God opens and closes doors. And you know, for me personally, I was at complete peace with whatever God decided—whether the door was going to be opened for me to have the opportunity to come here, there was going to be an offer, or it was going to be closed and I was going to stay, you know, over at VCU. And sometimes we wonder in life, you know, the door closes on you, and you wonder, like, why on earth did that happen? And usually later on, you figure out why that door closed on you. I’m so glad this door opened. I walk through that door with enthusiasm. I walk through that door with passion, with humility, with the desire to help right there, continue to build this place. And that’s really what it’s all about.”