Where did Dawn Staley coach before SC? Taking a look at 3x national champ's career so far
Dawn Staley is among the greatest coaches in women's basketball in modern times. The six-time WNBA All-Star helped make the South Carolina Gamecocks a premier program, but the magical run for coach Staley began earlier. Before joining the Gamecocks in 2008, she was reviving a different team.
Where did Dawn Staley coach before South Carolina?
Before coaching the South Carolina Gamecocks, Dawn Staley was the head coach at Temple University. Staley initially rejected the offer from the team's athletic director, Dave O'Brien, partly because she was in the Olympic Team in the Final Four in Philadelphia.
Speaking to the Inquirer in 2014, she reflected on her mindset:
"I just felt like I needed to go speak with him and tell him no face-to-face."
"It was really a casual conversation. What was I planning to do in five years, in 10 years? I was pretty honest; I envisioned myself playing."
O'Brien talked her into visiting the campus, where she part of an impromptu interview. However, she declined the coaching opportunity initially:
"He asked me to walk down the hall with him, to meet some other people. ... All this time, I didn't think it was an interview. I wasn't dressed appropriately. It was just professional courtesy, and there were 12 or 15 people in the room, the whole search committee [for the job]. I sat at the head of the table, fielding all these questions."
Eventually, O'Brien persuaded her and Dawn Staley took over as head coach for the team. Her first season saw the Temple Owls make their way to the WNIT.
Then, she led the team to four NCAA Tournament appearances over the next five years, winning the Atlantic 10 tournament each time. She also won the Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year Award for her year-round brilliance and for winning back-to-back regular season titles.
Staley finished her tenure at Temple University with the best overall record at 172-80. This included six NCAA appearances and four Atlantic 10 titles when she moved on to take over the South Carolina Gamecocks program.
Dawn Staley's 3-year run at South Carolina
Since 2022, Dawn Staley has solidified her place on the list of all-time great coaches. Over that period, the South Carolina Gamecocks have lost three games and won two national championships.
In 2022, the team went 36-2, winning the SEC regular season and tournament championship, before finishing with an NCAA national title. The next season, the team went undefeated to the Final Four.
Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes hampered their plans there, ending their season at 36-1. With a brand-new starting five this season, Staley was just as dominant.
She led the team to a fully unbeaten run, rattling off SEC regular season and tournament championships. She completed the trifecta with an NCAA championship, avenging the previous year's loss to Clark.
Her efforts saw her win Coach of the Year three years consecutively. Where do you think Staley stands in the all-time women's basketball coaches list? Let us know in the comments below.