Tina Langley
In simple terms, Langley put Rice women’s basketball back on the map. In just four seasons as head coach, Langley has increased Rice’s win total each year; including a jump from nine wins in her first season, to 28 wins this past season. Along with those 28 wins, Rice won the regular season and tournament Conference USA championships, and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Prior to going to Rice, Langley worked very closely with Brenda Frese at Maryland, serving as an assistant coach for two years, and the associate head coach for five. Langley has recruited and helped develop all-conference, All-American, and professional-level players. Langley has the experience, the record of winning, and the recruiting success to make an immediate impact with the Golden Bears.
Lisa Fortier
Fortier replaced Kelly Graves at Gonzaga in 2014, and she has been nothing but successful in Spokane. This past season, Fortier led the Bulldogs to a program-best 27-3 regular season record. That included wins over both Stanford and Missouri State in December of 2018. Missouri State made it all the way to the Sweet 16 this past March. In five seasons Fortier has rattled off win totals of 26, 19, 26, 27, and 29. In her first season, Fortier led the Bulldogs all the way to the Sweet 16 as a No. 11 seed. Prior to taking over as head coach, Fortier was an assistant coach under Graves for seven seasons. Fortier has certainly made a home for herself at Gonzaga, but one must think that she would be near or at the top of Cal’s list. With success as both an assistant and head coach, Fortier’s experience and accolades speak volumes. Not only that, but a Pac-12 school hiring a successful coach from Gonzaga has certainly worked out quite well for a certain team located in Eugene, Oregon.