Last month, Dom Starsia parted ways with Virginia after 24 seasons as head coach. Below, he explains how the situation unfolded and what's next for him and his staff.

Editor's Note: Courtesy of LaxSportsNet, former Virginia coach Dom Starsia makes his first on-camera comments after parting ways with the Cavalier program.

Many people followed and are interested in the process that ended with your parting ways with Virginia. How did that unfold from your perspective?

The first thing is this has been going on for almost a month, and you’re first person in the media that I’ve spoken to about this [situation]. No one spoke to me about it — people inquired, you reached out a few times — but I never commented to anyone about this. All the stuff that was being reported, none of it was coming from me.

Second, soon after our season ended, I spoke to the Athletic Director and he indicated that he thought he wanted to make a change. He was out of town for two weeks, and during that time we had a series of short discussions. By the time he was back in town, they had changed their mind. Now they want me to coach again, but we couldn’t agree on how that was going to be — call it a contract if you like — I had an idea of what I need to run the program successfully, and they didn’t agree. The night before the announcement was made, I turned down their last offer.

There was no anger, but at the same time there was some angst that wasn’t always necessary. If we’d had a conversation early on, I think the conversation that occurred could’ve gone more smoothly. At the end of the day when the alums got involved, you had a group of guys that were certainly supportive of me, and I also think they didn’t like feeling like they’d been ignored. I didn’t even talk to many of the alums — I needed to focus on this process and my family.

Ultimately, I wasn’t going to accept putting a band-aid on the situation. I offered them an easy out, and when they came back with a similar offer [as to what was initially discussed], I said ‘Circumstances have changed.’

I was past the lacrosse piece of this quickly. If you’d said to me, ‘Marc van Arsdale, Joe Starsia, my wife, the players — especially Zed Williams, of whom I’ve asked so much and is a year away from graduating — they’re going to be OK, but you don’t get to coach,’ I would’ve been fine with it.

What is assistant Marc van Arsdale’s status?

My guess is that [the UVa. athletic administration] is going to look to bring someone in from the outside [to be the head coach]. In 90% of the cases of people I’d imagine they’d hire here, most of those guys would be excited about the opportunity to keep Marc on staff. Also, I’m assuming he has his name in for some of the open head coach positions out there.

My sense is UVA is going to move quickly [on hiring the next head coach].

I remember when I first arrived here, Dave Urick called for me, I wasn’t home, so he talked to my wife, and the purpose of the call was to endorse Marc. So eventually we connect and he’s talking me into Marc, and I said, ‘You don’t need to convince me, I want him to stay.’ I’m confident Marc will land on his feet. Everybody likes and respects Marc and if he’s on the next staff, I think that’ll be very well-received.

I think Marc’s continuity on-campus is an incredible blessing and that has as much to do with a longterm success of a program as anything: the consistency of message. I remember being on the field when John Walker arrived on our staff and his head spinning because Marc and I could do anything without saying anything — a nod or a glance and we’d move on to the next drill.

What is assistant Joe Starsia’s status?

Before this all unfolded, he had said he wasn’t sure he was going to come back. He’s studying for the law boards. He’s gotten some calls about some coaching opportunities. He’s making some life choices for himself. He’s a lot smarter than his dad ever was and I think he’s fascinated by the thought of heading in a new direction.

Does your parting agreement with Virginia allow you to coach in 2017?

I know that in Marc’s situation, his contract is extended, and if he leaves and gets another job, [his new pay] is subtracted from what the University owes him. I’m not sure of the answer as it impacts me, but that would have no influence on whether I would choose to coach again. If there was a coaching position that was there, whether or not that new pay subtracted from what UVA owes me, would have no influence.

Are you interested in coaching college lacrosse in 2017?

I would and I could. I feel great. I think I’m better at this than I ever have been. I have the energy and enthusiasm for it. At the same time, if you were to describe the perfect job, I don’t know if I could leave Charlottesville. My family has been blessed to have found a wonderful group home setting for our daughters that’s 20 minutes from here.

Have any of the programs with head coaching openings reached out to you?

There’s been some feelers about some different things, but it’s hard to imagine. And so I’m open to it, my wife is, but at the same time it’s hard to picture moving out of here. Even if I could describe to you a perfect situation, I can’t imagine what that is. I can talk to whomever and listen, but I’m not in a rush.

What about coaching MLL or broadcasting?

I thought about the MLL. As that league continues to expand, I would sort of expect that opportunity would present itself. That’s easier to imagine doing than a college job, which requires you to be invested full-time. I’m not in a rush. I’d prefer [an MLL team] not fire someone in the middle of the season and then call me.

Broadcasting is possible and all, but again, I’m not in a rush. I don’t mind seeing what tomorrow is going to bring. I’m not ready to just sit on the porch, and there’s only so many books you can read, so I’ll sort of think about these things as they do come my way.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give your successor at Virginia?

I would try to solidify the recruiting classes that are in place. As I’ve talked to the recruits and their families, I think everybody’s going to wait and see what the university does. We haven’t reached the playing level the last couple years that we were used to. A lot of it was related to the talent — we didn’t have that Steele Stanwick. But I think those people are on the way. The person that gets the job will want to make sure those things stay in place. From my perspective, I’m not bitter about the program, I want the program to thrive. All the recruits I’ve spoken to, I’ve said to hang in there.