It appears that Chapman is not the only program that will have a defending Division I championship staff member on its sideline this spring.

According to a report on LaxMagazine.com - the website for Lacrosse Magazine - Brian Holman, an assistant on last year's NCAA Division I champion North Carolina squad, has agreed to become the next head coach at the University of Utah. The Utes are members of RMLC Division I and were previously coached by Rick Kladis.

Holman was an assistant for the Tar Heels during the last eight seasons, culminating in last year's national championship run.

Initial reports of the hiring sparked speculation that this was a sign of Utah's potential move away from the MCLA and into the varsity ranks.

"Those reports appear to have been premature," the LaxMagazine.com story surmised. "While the Holman hire would suggest it's on Utah's radar, [Utah associate athletic director Liz] Abel reiterated when reached by phone Wednesday that there have been no talks with anyone associated with the [Utah] team about elevating lacrosse to varsity. She said the university is focused solely on getting all of its 15 current athletic programs fully funded to meet Pac-12 requirements."

Utah finished the 2016 campaign with a 5-9 record and missed out on the four-team RMLC tournament.

Photo by Kevin P. Tucker