RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA Coaches of the Year

Definition
The RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coach of the Year is presented annually to one coach in each of the collegiate divisions: NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, and Junior College/Community College as well as High School, who best fulfills the criteria listed below.

Eligibility
Collegiate - Any collegiate head coach that is a member of the WBCA and in "good standing" as defined by the WBCA.

High School - High school head coaches are not required to be members of the WBCA to be nominated for this award.

Criteria (In Priority Order)
• Team success during current season
• Team improvement from previous season
• Fulfillment of team potential
• Professional manner and attitude of coach

Nomination
Collegiate - All collegiate WBCA member head or assistant coaches are eligible to nominate an individual in any award region who fits the above criteria. Collegiate nominees must be a WBCA member head coach.

High School - All high school WBCA member head and assistant coaches are eligible to nominate an individual in any award district who fits the above criteria. High school nominees are not required to be WBCA member head coaches.

Voting
Collegiate - After all nominations have been collected, the nomination information for each candidate will be accessible online for all NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA WBCA member head coaches with instructionsto cast an online ballot. Coaches can only cast their vote for nominees within their designated award region. In NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA, the coaches who receive the most votes in each WBCA awards region become a RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA Regional Coach of the Year.
*Does not apply to WBCA member head coaches at the JC/CC level

Selection
Collegiate - A selection committee in each division chooses the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coach of the Year via a conference call from the pool of Regional Coaches of the Year. NCAA Division III always includes their Final Four coaches in the pool of nominees. JC/CC does not have Regional Coaches of the Year, therefore all nominees are considered for this award.

High School - At the high school level, all nominations received by the deadline are divided by district among the WBCA High School Coach of the Year selection committee. On the first conference call the selection committee will discuss each nominee and vote for the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA District Coaches of the Year. On the final conference call, each committee member will present details and review their RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA District Coach of the Year. After the conference call, the selection committee votes from the pool of RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA District Coaches of the Year. The top vote-getter is named the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National High School Coach of the Year.

View Committees

Presentation
All six RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coaches of the Year are presented annually at the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA Coach of the Year Luncheon at the WBCA National Convention. RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA Regional/District Coaches of the Year are also recognized at the banquet.

2013 RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coach of the Year Award Recipients
NCAA Division I - Muffet McGraw, University of Notre Dame
NCAA Division II - Barbara Stevens, Bentley University
NCAA Division III - Kris Huffman, DePauw University
NAIA - George Wilson, College of the Ozarks
JC/CC - Kate Lynch, Community College of Rhode Island
High School - Curtis Ekmark, St. Mary's High School (Phoenix, Ariz.)

View Past RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coaches of the Year