To the editor:

The sky did not fall. The day after Roy Williams announced his departure, the sun still came up. Roy was a great coach and a great steward of the Kansas basketball legacy for 15 years. Let’s be grateful for that and for Roy being a terrific role model and fine example to our kids — something that is often lacking in collegiate and professional sports. While I am disappointed Roy is leaving, I, for one, will not second-guess his reasons, which I’m sure are deeply personal. Thanks. Roy, and good luck at the University of North Carolina.

To the critics who say, “Roy couldn’t win the big one anyway'” I say grow up. As a Kansas University grad, I could not be more proud of a coach and institution that puts integrity and honesty ahead of a championship medal. For our student athletes and incoming recruits, please remember that Jayhawk basketball is bigger than any one player or any one coach. We have a respected legacy second to none, and you have the opportunity to continue that legacy under a new coach. Throwing a pity party or bolting for another program or the NBA will only diminish your own character.

Through the years, much has been written about “class” with respect to the Jayhawk basketball program. As alumni, students, athletes, coaches and fans, it is time to buck up and prove it again. Let’s show some class in this awkward and disappointing moment, wishing Roy and his family well and welcoming a new coach and athletic director to continue the legacy.

John Esau,

Lawrence