The week got off to a wild start for the UCLA Bruins on Monday when the team announced the removal of Martin Jarmond from his position as the school’s Athletic Director.
On Tuesday, new head coach Bob Chesney shared his thoughts on the university’s decision following the team’s practice. Chesney began his media availability with a statement on Jarmond.
“I don’t understand all the business sides of everything, but I do know he was an unbelievable friend. Not only to me, and still will be, but to my wife Jess. They helped us a great deal in getting here,” Chesney said of Jarmond. “From babysitters, to pediatricians, to doctors, to everything you can think of. They were very, extremely, supportive in a lot of coaches’ personal lives, not just our
family, but every coach out here.”
While Chesney can appreciate what Jarmond did for him, his coaching staff and his family, UCLA had to pull the plug on Jarmond’s tenure before the athletics’ program built any more of a budget deficit.
“For me this won’t be a distraction. I’ve been through it before at Holy Cross. There was three AD’s and two presidents in my time there and then when we were at JMU, we had two athletic directors and two presidents,” Chesney said of the shift. “You don’t got to worry about us, and how we’ll handle it. I worry for, and think a lot about Martin right now. All of our thoughts are with him.”
Chesney never coached a game at UCLA under Jarmond but still showed the Bruins’ former AD plenty of respect following the move.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Bob Chesney speaks on Tuesday about Martin Jarmond's dismissal
