It took them long enough…--Oliver Barry CRS, GRI
Real Estate Broker
Crye-Leike, Realtors
964 Main St
Nashville, TN 37206
Mobile: 615-972-4239
Office: 615-650-7447
Begin forwarded message:From: Shane Ford <goufgators01@gmail.com>Subject: [gatornews] [SUN]: Interim no longer: Florida Gators name Kelly Rae Finley women's basketball head coachDate: February 28, 2022 at 3:32:00 PM CSTTo: GatorNews <gatornews@googlegroups.com>Reply-To: gatornews+owners@googlegroups.comAhead of the SEC Tournament in Nashville, the Florida women's basketball program has promoted Kelly Rae Finley from interim head coach to head coach, the UAA announced Monday.
As UF's interim head coach, Finley led the Gators to a 20-win season, the program's first since the 2015-16 campaign.
The Gators (20-9, 10-6 SEC) secured the No. 5 seed in the SEC tournament and will play Thursday at approximately 1:30 p.m. against the winner of Wednesday's matchup between Vanderbilt and Texas A&M.
"I'm humbled to be given the opportunity to lead our women's basketball program and I believe that together we will be able to achieve great things," Finley said. "I'm forever grateful for our staff and student-athletes for their dedication to growing this program and I look forward to continuing on this journey."
Focused:Florida women's basketball focused on LSU and games ahead, not coach's interim status
Last game:3 takeaways from the Florida Gators women's basketball team's 78-73 loss to Missouri
Finley, 36, joined the UF program prior to the 2017-18 season as an assistant coach, a role she would remain in for the 2018-19 campaign. She was elevated to assistant head coach the following year before becoming the program's interim head coach in July 2021 in the wake of former head coach Cam Newbauer's dismissal.
Despite controversy and some uncertainty — the team's returning leading scorer, Lavender Briggs, initially entered her name in the NCAA's transfer portal before returning, only to suffer a season-ending injury in the first week of the season — the Gators secured double-digit conference victories this season. Finley was named one of 15 finalists for the Naismith Coach of the Year Award as a result of the Gators' noticeable improvement.
In an attempt to keep the focus on the Gators, Finley opted to minimize the discussion of the interim tag, saying it took away from the team's accomplishments on the court.
Although the postseason remains the immediate priority, the program has taken an important step in the build-up: locking up its head coach for the future.
"Within this program, we strive to create a sustainable and competitive environment that encourages collaboration, fosters creativity and empowers our young women to achieve growth and success during their time at Florida and beyond," Finley said.
Prior to her time in Florida, Finley had coaching stints at Arizona (2016-17), Colorado (2012-16) and Harvard (2009-12). At Arizona, Finley helped to bring in the No. 34 recruiting class in the nation and helped Colorado achieve a top-25 ranked class in 2015. At Harvard, Finley assisted in the signing of Temitop Fagbenle, the Ivy League's first McDonald's All-American and second Olympian.
Finley, an Edina, Minnesota native, graduated from Colorado State in 2008 where she earned Mountain West Conference Scholar-Athlete honors as a member of the women's basketball team.
Sent from Shane's iPhoneGo Gators!--
--
GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY!
1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions |
Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007)
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GatorNews" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to gatornews+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/gatornews/1D36CA8E-9A2E-48DE-B246-9611082A7766%40gmail.com.
--
GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY!
1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007)
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GatorTalk" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to gatortalk+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/gatortalk/268C9563-250B-46DC-B84E-D13DC282CCE9%40realtracs.com.
--
GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY!
1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007)
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GatorTalk" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to gatortalk+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/gatortalk/CADrWSXuye6Uttc7fBv3Hr5BsO7jo1bWHeAzwqyjdfvK3Z6tovA%40mail.gmail.com.
