FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State Director of Athletics Thomas Boeh announced Saturday the hiring of Utah State head coach Raegan Pebley to the same position for the Bulldogs' women's basketball program.
Pebley becomes the ninth head coach in Bulldog history, replacing Adrian Wiggins. After revitalizing the Utah State program in 2003 that had been dormant for 16 years, Pebley guided the Aggies to a program-record 21 wins in 2011-12 and was one of eight coaches to be a finalist for the 2012 WBCA National Coach of the Year award.
Pebley was hired on May 1, 2002 as the coach to take over the Utah State program that reinstated women's basketball in 2003. She built the Aggies from the ground up to a team that made two WNIT appearances in the last two years and finished second in the WAC last season, right behind the Bulldog program she now inherits.
In 2011, she was named the WAC Coach of the Year and this past year was the 2012 RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA Region 7 Coach of the Year.
At Utah State, Pebley led her team to its first postseason appearances since before the program had been dropped in 1987 by finishing third in the WAC in 2011 and second this past year. She went 39-25 in her last two seasons with the Aggies and 110-155 in her nine years building that program from scratch.
Before taking over the Utah State program, Pebley was an assistant coach at George Mason from 1997-99, and at Colorado State from 1999-2001.
Pebley played two seasons in the WNBA after being drafted 21st overall in the third round by the Cleveland Rockers in 1997. She spent the 1997 season with the Utah Starzz and 1998 with the Rockers.
A graduate of the University of Colorado, Pebley led the Buffs to a 106-24 overall record in her career, four conference championships and she was selected all-conference twice. CU made two Sweet 16's during her career and in her freshman season, made it to the Elite 8 by winning a school record 30 games (30-3 overall). Colorado had won 25-straight games that season and finished the year ranked No. 5.
Pebley and her husband, Keith, have one son, Joseph (8), and one daughter, Harper (5).