Two-time national champion Bridgette Gordon will return to Tennessee as an assistant coach, her alma mater announced on Thursday.
Gordon won a pair of titles with the Lady Vols as a player from 1985-89, and was a 1988 Olympic Gold Medalist. She helped Tennessee to the Final Four in each of her four seasons and was the 1989 Final Four MVP.
Gordon has spent the last seven seasons as an assistant coach at Wichita State and the last three as recruiting coordinator. In that time, she developed a reputation for her eye for talent and helped develop several all-Missouri Valley Conference players.
Tennessee coach Holly Warlick noted Gordon’s ability as a coach, not just her history with the program, as a main contributor to the decision to bring her back:
"“Everyone we visited with about Bridgette spoke highly of her reputation as a coach and person. She has great relationships with her players, college administrators, AAU and high school coaches, university donors and the community. One veteran college athletics administrator told us ‘the game needs Bridgette Gordon in it.“Bridgette is not only a fantastic recruiter, but she also is an experienced floor coach who holds players accountable. She has a great love for Tennessee, coaches with passion, cares about people, embodies loyalty and is invested in the history and future of this program.”"
Gordon is a Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer who has also spent time as a WNBA scout, and an assistant at Georgia State and Stetson. She was inducted into the UT Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.