Not One for the Spotlight
7/19/2024 1:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
A day before his birthday, the athletic department wanted to highlight the numerous noteworthy accomplishments that the famously humble Boise State Women's Basketball Head Coach Gordy Presnell obtained this past season as part of the department's Year in Review.
Boasting the eighth-most collegiate wins of any active Division I women’s basketball head coach, Boise State women’s basketball head coach Gordy Presnell has plenty of accolades on his shelf. But you wouldn’t ever know it by talking to him.
Presnell has led the Broncos to six NCAA Tournament qualifications, four regular season titles and six tournament titles. The Broncos have notched 10+ wins over the last nine seasons, the most of any team in the Mountain West, and his 243 MW wins and 20 MW Tournament wins are the most of any active coach.
He didn’t come close to slowing down this season. He picked up his 200th home victory as the coach of the Broncos with a win over UC Davis, and picked up his 350th victory at the helm of Boise State with a Feb. 10 win over Wyoming.
Despite the accomplishments, Presnell is as humble as can be. Knowing he would downplay recognition of any of these accomplishments, the athletic department resorted to staging a surprise pregame ceremony to ensure he was properly celebrated. Presnell was only told about it moments before it happened.
“I’ve been really fortunate to coach at Boise State,” Presnell said. “I’ve been surrounded by great administrations, great assistant coaches and most importantly great players. I don’t take a shot, I don’t make an assist. It’s been a great opportunity to be a part of their lives. I'm just honored and blessed to get to coach here.”
His humility was on display again after he picked up the 750th victory of his career with an 85-49 win over Utah State in the opening round of the MW Tournament. The accomplishment, predicted pregame to be the main storyline in the win, was quickly overshadowed by the performance from Abby Muse, who notched the third triple-double in program history with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
The team went into the locker room following the win, while Presnell and Muse stayed behind for media obligations. Presnell finished up first and headed to the locker room, where he was bombarded by the team in celebration of his milestone. Never one to bask in the spotlight, Presnell quickly instructed the players to do the same for Muse, who got a similar treatment when she entered moments later.
“Those are the moments that make coaching so great,” Presnell said. “She came in and made great decisions. I was really proud of her, not only for her individual accomplishment, but also for getting us back out of our rut. That was a really special moment for her and I’m glad she got to have it. It was a good night for Boise State women’s basketball.”
