All the years, all the wins, but the first thing people say about basketball coach Lon Kruger is about who he is off the court.

Everyone has their own Kruger story, and Lon was able to tell some of his own during a retirement Zoom call Friday morning.

After 35 years of coaching college basketball, and the last 10 at Oklahoma, Kruger called it a career Thursday afternoon.

Speaking for more than 30 minutes, Kruger was visibly emotional repeatedly in talking about former OU assistant coach Lew Hill, who died earlier this year, and talking about relationships with his players and talking about his parents.

He knew the end would come at OU. He knew it would be soon, but he had no idea it was going to be after this season.

“We didn’t expect it to be right now, I guess, quite frankly,” Kruger said. “All transparency, and Coach Hill passed, you know a couple months ago.

“That hit hard and that got Barbara probably talking more seriously about it and. And then, you know, we start talking about how we want to spend, you know, we're fortunate to have good health and, and, again, enjoyed every, every day and grandkids were a big deal, no question about that. An

“And the grandkids and Kevin’s opportunity all just kind of came together at the same time. And we're, you know at this point in mixed emotions, of course, and as much as we'll miss – we're really excited about where we're at and appreciative of all the, all the folks who've been involved and, and, really, really fired up about what lies ahead, so it'll be great.”

Kruger’s son, Kevin, who was once an assistant at OU, was officially named the UNLV head coach last weekend.

Kruger took over a struggling OU program and quickly got it back on its feet. In his 10 seasons, the Sooners reached the NCAA Tournament seven times, including the magical Final Four run in 2016. Friday actually marked the five-year anniversary of OU’s win over Oregon in the Elite Eight to reach that milestone.

Each team is its own entity and has its own memories, but Kruger reflected back on what made that group, led by Buddy Hield, so special. The joy, the love of practice, and a promise kept by Hield from the beginning of his senior season.

“He said from day one his senior year, you know that they were going to Final Four,” Kruger said. “And you look right, it's hard to go the Final Four. It’s hard to win tournament games. It's hard to win any games, especially in the Big 12 but he just absolutely, you know expected that.

“It wasn't just saying it, and the other guys kind of bought into it and gradually believed it, and they just kept getting better and better and then played unbelievable basketball.”

For all the on-court success, Kruger preached about relationships. The relationships built with players, coaches and everybody associated with any program.

The games are nice, but it’s those types of things he said he’s going to miss the most.

His last season is one for the ages, obviously. No team has encountered what this group went through with COVID-19, the starting and stopping, playing with significant pieces in big-time games. All said and done, OU was able to earn a national ranking of No. 7 and saw its season come to an end vs. No. 1 overall seed Gonzaga on Monday afternoon in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

“The guys are great. The guys are absolutely great,” Kruger said. “They made us feel good. And that's a compliment to them because, you know, it's hard. It's hard and I told them, you guys know how great University of Oklahoma is. Absolutely. We have a terrific coach coming in soon. And, just be patient, and trust the process.”

It’s rare to find someone like Kruger, and a legitimate question is whether someone like Kruger can thrive in today’s climate.

A clean program if ever there was one. No NCAA sanctions, no worrying about any NCAA sanctions. Someone who had time for every single person, every single fan.

Kruger loves the game, will always love the game, but he knows there need to be changes. Big changes to improve the game and keep the integrity of the game.

“It's got to revamp, period. I mean we can't continue as we are,” Kruger said. “You know, one of the greatest things my dad imparted with me, there's no satisfaction in cheating and winning. I mean, absolutely anyone could do that, you know.

“There needs to be great changes. And it's tough because of the amateurism aspect, the legal front, you know what you can do, but NCAA right now, going into a gunfight with a knife and, and we're not winning.”

Kruger finishes with an overall record of 674-432, the only coach to take five teams to the NCAA Tournament and win at least one game in the tournament and the two Final Four appearances, adding Florida in 1994 with OU in 2016.

But that will do it. It’s officially a wrap for Kruger, and he’s ready.

“We love what we do, and we've been blessed with the opportunity to do what we love for 50 years, and the timing is right,” Kruger said. “And we will be so, so engaged in whatever happens going forward. And, and so excited about what's going to happen going forward because all the pieces are in place to you know, to take this to much greater heights.

“And I say pieces in terms of leadership and genuine people. We're grateful, appreciative. Excited about what lies ahead and in part of that excitement is the cheering on and supporting all those people in places where we've been and, you know, running to whatever lies ahead.”