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Utah Director of Athletics Mark Harlan, left, honors Alex Jensen with his jersey at a press conference to introduce Alex Jensen, right, as the new head coach for the University of Utah men's basketball team at the Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Monday, March 17, 2025. | Tess Crowley, Deseret News
Another assistant coach is in the fold for Alex Jensen’s coaching staff, and it’s someone with extensive ties to the Beehive State.
Eric Daniels is joining the University of Utah men’s basketball staff, CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein first reported Thursday morning. The school officially announced the hire Thursday afternoon.
Daniels is the son of former Runnin’ Utes assistant coach Donny Daniels, who worked for 11 years under Rick Majerus at Utah and was also an assistant at Gonzaga and UCLA and the head coach at Cal-State Fullerton.
“I couldn’t be happier to have Eric join our staff,” Jensen said in a statement. “Eric has deep ties to the Runnin’ Utes. He’s a great player development coach and has been successful at every stop he’s had in his career. Eric also has a deep connection and understanding to basketball in the state of Utah that will be instrumental to the future of our program.”
Eric Daniels grew up in Utah and has been in the coaching scene since 2008, following his college playing days at the NAIA Division II level.
He spent the past season at Utah State under head coach Jerrod Calhoun, and prior to that, Daniels was at Weber State as an assistant from 2019-24.
He also spent four years at Utah Valley under Mark Pope, the former BYU head coach who’s now in charge at Kentucky.
Daniels worked one year on the Orlando Magic basketball staff, and among his responsibilities were on-court work, player development and video tasks.
He began his coaching career at Southern Utah in the 2008-09 season, before moving on to Regis University in Denver for five seasons.
By joining Jensen’s staff, he gives the Utes an insider in the Utah market, someone who’s worked the past decade at the collegiate level in the Beehive State.
The Utah staff now includes Jensen, Daniels, assistant coach Raphael Chillious and general manager Wes Wilcox.
“I am extremely excited and honored to be joining Coach Jensen and the Utah basketball program,” Daniels said in a statement. “I look forward to the challenge of bringing the Runnin’ Utes back to NCAA Tournaments and pursue championships.
“Growing up down the road I know what a special place the University of Utah is, and it feels almost surreal being able to come back home and work for a program with such rich tradition. I want to thank Coach Jensen and Mark Harlan for such an incredible opportunity, and can’t wait to get started!”
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