West Georgia Head women’s basketball coach Joanna Reitz announced today the addition of Joel Harrison to the UWG staff as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
A 13-year veteran of coaching at the collegiate level, Harrison brings an impressive résumé that most recently includes three seasons at former Gulf South Conference rival West Florida.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Coach Harrison to our staff as he is a rising star in this profession. His work ethic, his attention to detail, and his alignment with the values in our program make him a perfect fit for our staff,” said Reitz.
While in Pensacola, Harrison was part of an Argonaut program that compiled a 57-28 record and finished as high as second in the regular season standings. He was instrumental in developing five All-Gulf South Conference selections, a GSC Freshman of the Year, a GSC Player of the Year and an All-American all in a three-year span.
“I am humbled and honored to join Coach Reitz’s staff here at West Georgia,” said Harrison. “To have the opportunity to help this program transition to Division I is extremely special and a challenge that I am looking forward to. There are very few times in sports that you get to be the ‘first’ at something and getting that opportunity to be on the first Division I staff is something I can always cherish.”
Harrison was UWF’s recruiting coordinator as well as overseeing the team’s academics that featured a College Sports Communicators (CSC) All-American selection.
Additionally, in his time at UWF, Harrison was the Leadership Playbook Assistant Coach of the Year in 2023 and was selected to the 2024 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Next Generation Institute which features 30 coaches across all levels of college basketball, and he was one of only five non-Division I coaches to be selected.
Prior to his stint at West Florida, Harrison was at Faulkner where he worked with the men’s team and the women’s team, with his time culminating with three seasons as the women’s assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
While at Faulkner, Harrison developed two All-Americans, nine All-Conference players, two All-Freshman selections, a Freshman of the Year, and a SSAC Player of the Year.
“In his time at both Faulkner & West Florida, he’s established himself as an elite recruiter and player developer. Over the past two seasons that I’ve been here at UWG, I’ve experienced coaching against the players that he recruited to West Florida and they were some of the best players in the GSC,” added Reitz. “His resume speaks for itself and as we prepare to make this move to Division I, his established network of connections within the ASUN footprint along with his ability to recruit and develop players into all-conference selections will make an immediate impact on our program and help take us to the next level.”
“I can’t wait to get to work to help compete at the highest level and to mentor these awesome student-athletes both in basketball and in life,” concluded Harrison.
Harrison holds a Bachelor’s of Science from Faulkner and is currently finishing up his Master’s of Science in Physical Education from UWF.
https://uwgathletics.com/news/2024/5/8/uwg-adds-joel-harrison-to-womens-basketball-staff.aspx
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