CEDAR CITY, Utah – Southern Utah University Head Women's Basketball Coach Tracy Mason has announced the promotion of Jay Johnson to Associate Head Coach.
Johnson enters his ninth season with the Thunderbirds after serving as an assistant coach since joining Mason's staff in 2018. During that time, he has played a pivotal role in helping transform Southern Utah into one of the premier mid-major programs in the West, contributing to conference championships, postseason appearances, and one of the most successful stretches in program history.
Head Coach Tracy Mason Said
"Jay has earned this promotion in every way. He's been beside me every step of the way as we've built this program into a championship contender. His basketball knowledge, work ethic, loyalty, and ability to develop our student-athletes have been invaluable to our success. More importantly, he's someone our players trust, and our staff relies on every single day. I'm excited to recognize everything he has meant to our program with this well-deserved promotion."
Most recently, Johnson helped engineer one of the program's most impressive seasons in 2025-26. Despite being unanimously picked to finish last in the Western Athletic Conference preseason poll, the Thunderbirds finished 19-13 overall and 11-8 in conference play to tie for third in the league standings. Southern Utah tied the program record with 14 home victories, earned the program's second-ever WNIT appearance, and led the WAC in scoring (72.3 points per game), rebounding (41.5 per game), and three-point shooting percentage while producing four All-WAC honorees.
During the 2024-25 season, Johnson helped the Thunderbirds close conference play by winning five of their final six games, including a season sweep of Utah Tech and a road victory at Utah Valley, advancing to the WAC Tournament quarterfinals.
Johnson was also instrumental in the historic 2022-23 campaign, when Southern Utah captured both the WAC regular season and tournament championships in its first year in the conference. The Thunderbirds finished 23-10 overall and set a program record with 16 conference victories before earning the first NCAA Tournament berth in school history. The season also marked the fourth consecutive winning campaign for the program.
In 2021-22, Johnson helped lead Southern Utah to an 18-12 record and a second-place finish in the Big Sky Conference with 14 league victories, the second-most conference wins in program history. The season marked the first time since 1993-96 that the Thunderbirds recorded three consecutive winning seasons.
During the shortened 2020-21 season, Johnson helped guide Southern Utah to an 11-9 overall record and a first-round bye in the Big Sky Tournament.
The foundation for the program's success was established during Johnson's first two seasons in Cedar City. In 2019-20, the Thunderbirds won 18 games, recorded their most conference victories since 2013-14, set a school record with 197 three-pointers, and produced Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year Rebecca Cardenas. Johnson played a significant role in the development of the Thunderbirds' guards throughout that season.
Johnson made an immediate impact after arriving at Southern Utah in 2018-19, helping the Thunderbirds double their conference win total from the previous season, earn notable non-conference victories over BYU, San Diego, and Utah Valley, and capture the program's first Big Sky Tournament victory in four years.
"Southern Utah has become home for me, and I'm incredibly grateful to Coach Mason, our administration, and everyone who has believed in me throughout this journey," Johnson said. "It's been an honor to help build this program over the past eight seasons, and I'm excited for what's ahead. We have an outstanding group of student-athletes and staff, and I can't wait to continue pursuing championships while representing Southern Utah the right way."
Next Up
After graduating only one senior, SUU could run it back with the majority of their players in the 2026-2027 season. As they return to the Big Sky Conference, the Thunderbirds will aim to build on the success they found this year and defeat the odds once again.
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