Wake Forest University Director of Athletics John Currie announced today that women’s basketball head coach Jen Hoover has been relieved of her duties.
“After a comprehensive review of the women’s basketball program, and with the support of President Susan R. Wente and University leadership, I have determined that it is time for a change in our head coaching position,” said Currie. “With our No. 1 priority being able to provide a World Class Student-Athlete Experience, staff departures and the current trajectory of the program allows this to be the right time to make a change.
“Coach Hoover is a lifelong Demon Deacon and I am deeply grateful to her, her husband John and their daughter Maggie for their dedication to our University community and women’s basketball student-athletes over the past decade. Coach Hoover will forever be a Demon Deacon and will always be a valued member of our community and an esteemed alumna of our prestigious University and women’s hoops program.”
“I am disappointed and deeply saddened to receive the news that I was terminated today without cause,” said Hoover. “I am so proud of our many accomplishments over the past 10 years including the return for the program to the NCAA in 2021.
“Being an alum of this great institution, I put my heart and soul into developing our young ladies on and off the court and in building a successful program. I want to thank all of the players, coaches and staff members who were a part of this journey. I wish all my former and current players the best in all their future endeavors. Go Deacs 🎩”
“I am grateful to Jen Hoover for her dedication to Wake Forest and her student-athletes during her coaching tenure at Wake Forest,” said President Susan R. Wente. “Our student-athletes are always our top priority during such a transition as we continue striving to provide them with exceptional academic and athletic experiences.”
Hoover was named Wake Forest’s 10th coach in program history in May 2012 and finished her tenure with a 162-183 overall record and a 62-124 mark in the ACC. She is Wake Forest’s all-time wins leader, achieving the milestone during the 2020-21 season with her 126th victory as the Demon Deacons’ head coach in an ACC Second Round victory over rival North Carolina. In her time as head coach, she led Wake Forest to four postseason appearances including a berth as a No. 9 seed in the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament.
Under her leadership, the Demon Deacons had back-to-back First Team All-ACC selections (Ivana Raca – 2021; Jewel Spear – 2022). She coached five 1,000-point scorers during her time at Wake Forest.
Hoover returned to Wake Forest to lead the program after starring for the Demon Deacons from 1987-91. She was a three-time All-ACC selection and is second on the school’s career record charts for points (1,728) and rebounds (1,006). Hoover was a member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll and a member of the South team that won the bronze medal at the 1989 Olympic Festival in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She also led the Deacs to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1988. Hoover was inducted to the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
“As we begin our search for our next head women’s basketball coach, we do so knowing that this is a program poised for success,” said Currie. “Wake Forest’s status as a top-30 university, the Atlantic Coast Conference and the city of Winston-Salem are an unrivaled combination. And the state-of-the-art Shah Basketball Complex, David Budd Gymnasium and soon-to-be-completed Dr. Caryl Guth Women’s Basketball Clubhouse provides our Demon Deacons basketball student-athletes with the best facility infrastructure in the country.”
