CARTERVILLE, IL (WSIL) - Kyle Smithpeters invested 15 years into the John a. Logan basketball program. He spent five seasons as an assistant before taking over as the Vols head coach for the last 10 years.
Smithpeters now goes from Carterville to Columbia and will team up with Dennis Gates.
For the last decade Kyle Smithpeters has been synonymous with John A. Logan basketball, now its time for a new chapter.
Smithpeters spoke on his time with John A. Logan, saying he is "excited about the opportunity excited about staying in the Midwest an area that I've you know love hate leaving southern Illinois I mean it's a home to me and just we've had so many good memories here at Logan and this area."
Those memories Smithpeters is referring to features a lot of winning, including a Region 24 Championship for the third straight year. His success with the Vols has allowed him to join Missouri as an assistant coach under current Missouri head coach Dennis Gates.
Gates spoke on Smithpeters joining the organization, stating "he is more than deserving of the opportunity. He is a future head coach at the Division I level and I'm excited to allow that partnership to go through me and my coaching tree but also Mizzou."
Smithpeters also had remarks on the opportunity to work with Gates, saying "I've always said I would not leave Logan for just any opportunity but when you have an opportunity to go with someone who is truly on the same page you are with success and helping young kids then its just a very hard opportunity to say no to."
The pair have been friends for almost two decades and Gates knows Smithpeters delivers amazing results.
Gates praised Smithpeters coaching ability, saying "he is the last coach, the last junior college coach in the country to have a young man drafted in the NBA. That is an unbelievable accomplishment not just to him but his staff on what he has been able to build during his tenure."
Smithpeters spoke on his goals he has for the Tigers, saying "all in all we all want the same thing and that's for you know Mizzou basketball and university to be special."
And that's the game plan for this year and the future.
Smithpeters is not the only area coach to join the new Tigers staff. Former SEMO head coach Dickey Nutt was also recently hired as an assistant at Mizzou.
