When South Carolina faces Ole Miss on Sunday, it will be the first time ESPN’s College GameDay will feature two teams with Black women as head coaches. When asked about it during media availability on February 20, Dawn Staley laughed, but she hit the nail on the head with her comments.
“Damn,” Staley said. “In 2026 we’re still making history like that?”
Staley also added that she didn’t want the game to feature two Black women head coaches just to make history without considering their success, but, given the prominence of Black women in the sport, this is long overdue.
Staley and Ole Miss coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin are sure to put on a show. Both teams are ranked—the Gamecocks are number three in the nation and the Rebels are ranked seventeenth—and both are hungry for a win on a big stage. South Carolina is on track to win the SEC and doesn’t want to spoil an almost perfect record with an upset loss. Ole Miss, meanwhile, is looking to bounce back from a close loss to LSU and secure another win against a top-five team after beating Vanderbilt to close out January.
The WNBA is set to start the 2026 season without a Black woman in a head coaching position
Representation of Black women in the WNBA coaching ranks has been a topic of discussion since the end of last season. The Storm let Noelle Quinn go, and none of the five teams with open head coaching positions hired a Black woman. Considering that the league is primarily made up of Black players, their absence in the coaching ranks is glaring. After all, the WNBA built its success largely on the talent, determination, hard work, knowledge, and basketball IQ of countless Black women, but none of them are good enough to lead a team from the sidelines?
Even though no Black woman will hold a head coaching position next WNBA season, there is plenty of representation on the sidelines with several women, including two women of color, and two Black men. Still, many fans and players are bothered by the fact that not many former players are being offered head coaching positions and that NBA coaches now look to make the move to the W—and rightfully so. Just a few seasons ago no man in the NBA coaching ranks would have been interested in coming to the W instead.
Unrivaled, on the other hand, heard people’s complaints and established a group of head coaches that is made up primarily of Black women. Nola Henry and Teresa Weatherspoon returned for a second season with the league, while Noelle Quinn, Rena Wakama, and Roneeka Hodges joined the coaching ranks for the 2026 season. Quinn, Weatherspoon, and Hodges are all former WNBA players.