ESPN broadcaster Scott Van Pelt torched Kevin Willard for how he left the Maryland Terrapins men's basketball program to take the Villanova Wildcats' job.

Maryland fans aren’t sorry to see Kevin Willard go to Villanova, but the the university shouldn’t ignore lessons from his abrupt departure.

The public nature of Kevin Willard's drawn out departure from Maryland left Terrapins fans with a sour taste, but he said it's time to move on.

“All I’m going to say is that Maryland just got a great coach in Buzz [Williams],” Willard said at the same time Williams was being introduced at a live press conference on campus. “I’m really happy for them, and I’m super excited to be in a great basketball conference here [in the Big East]. And I just think it’s time that everyone moved on.”

Every step of Kevin Willard’s journey to Villanova from Maryland should be instructive and sobering. It should strip away any remaining sentimentality about the world of college basketball and how Villanova’s leaders view the Wildcats’ place in it.

PHILADELPHIA — Kevin Willard deadpanned that — no, he hadn’t heard the laundry list of complaints lodged against him by Maryland fans and former players and, well, the list goes on — that he threw his program under the bus and then happily got behind the wheel to steamroll over their carcass all while the Terrapins made a run to the Sweet 16.

Kevin Willard is bolting Maryland to become the Villanova head coach, according to multiple reports, after an ugly saga in which the 49-year-old openly griped about aspects of the program during the team’s March Madness run. The Terrapins, a No. 4 seed, were eliminated by No. 1 Florida in the Sweet 16 on Thursday.

Kevin Willard, the new Villanova men's basketball coach After missing three consecutive NCAA tournaments, Villanova was ready for a change. Maryland’s Kevin Willard will replace Kyle Neptune as the school’s men’s basketball coach.

Villanova University announced Kevin Willard, who most recently coached the Maryland Terrapins, will join the school's men's basketball program as head coach.