Jerry Finkbeiner is in his eighth season as the head women’s basketball coach at Utah State.
Finkbeiner (pronounced Fink-by-ner) was named the ninth head coach in USU program history on April 26, 2012. He is just the second male coach in Utah State history, joining Bob Corbin, who was the Aggies’ coach from 1984-86. Finkbeiner is only the second USU coach since the reinstatement of the program in 2003, when Raegan Pebley took over.
Finkbeiner has an overall record of 570-366 (.609) in 30 years as a collegiate head coach, including his time at Utah State, Oral Roberts (1996-2013) and Southern Nazarene (1991-96). He is also 24th in the nation among active Division I coaches with his 570 career wins.
During the 2018-19 season, Finkbeiner led the Aggies to their largest turnaround in program history after improving by 10 wins to go 17-16 overall, including 10-8 in Mountain West action. Utah State competed in the Women’s Basketball Invitational for its ninth postseason appearance in program history, where the Aggies recorded their first postseason win since the 2010-11 season in the opening round of the WBI with a 68-60 victory over UC Riverside (March 20). USU also posted its largest margin of victory, 71, in program history in its 106-35 win over Northern New Mexico College (Nov. 9).
That season, guard/forward Shannon Dufficy was named all-Mountain West after averaging a double-double in league play with 16.6 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. Dufficy ranked second in the USU record books with 838 career rebounds, and set the school record for most rebounds in a single season with 339 boards. Dufficy also set the school record for most consecutive double-doubles with nine, as well as most double-doubles in a single-season with 19. Dufficy tied Sharon Epps (1982-83) for most career double-doubles with 31.
Guard Eliza West became Utah State’s all-time assist leader with 457 career helpers. West dished out 184 assists during the season to rank second in the single-season record books. Center Deja Mason improved her USU program block record to 181 career swats, sitting 58 blocks ahead of second place (133). Two Aggies earned Mountain West Player of the Week honors as Dufficy earned the honor twice (Jan. 7 and March 8), while guard/forward Hailey Bassett earned the first weekly award (Nov. 12).
In the classroom, nine players earned academic all-Mountain West honors, while five were named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
In the 2017-18 season, Finkbeiner coached the Aggies to a 7-23 record, going 5-13 in Mountain West play. That year, Mason took over the No. 1 spot in USU career blocks with 142 and guard Rachel Brewster joined the 1,000-point club with 1,016 to rank 10th all-time in scoring. Additionally, West claimed the seventh spot in career assists with 273, while Dufficy earned the No. 10 spot in career rebounds with 499.
In the classroom, nine players earned academic all-Mountain West honors, while four were named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
During the 2016-17 season, Finkbeiner led the Aggies to a 17-15 record, including a 9-9 finish in Mountain West play. Additionally, USU won a program-record 12 home games, going 12-4 in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Utah State finished sixth in the conference standings, advancing to the second round of the Mountain West tournament. Utah State also made its first postseason appearance in four seasons, accepting a Women’s Basketball Invitational bid.
At the conclusion of the season, West was named the Mountain West Freshman of the Year, while also earning a spot on the all-freshman team. Dufficy joined West on the all-freshman team, and Brewster earned honorable mention all-Mountain West honors. The Aggies were also recognized for their work in the classroom, as eight earned academic all-Mountain West honors and five were named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
Finkbeiner coached the 2015-16 squad to a 14-17 record, including an 8-10 Mountain West ledger. The Aggies finished seventh in the league, advancing to the second round of the conference tournament. Guard Funda Nakkasoglu earned first-team all-Mountain West honors, while Brewster was named to the all-freshman team.
Off the court, seven Aggies earned academic all-Mountain West honors with another six being named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
In 2014-15, Finkbeiner coached the Aggies to an 8-23 record, going 5-13 in Mountain West play. That year, Finkbeiner led Nakkasoglu to the Mountain West Freshman of the Year award. Additionally, Nakkasoglu earned honorable mention all-conference accolades. At the conclusion of the season, forward Franny Vaaulu became the second of Finkbeiner’s players to sign a professional contract, playing for the Wolfpack in Wolfenbüttel, Germany.
In the classroom, four players earned academic all-Mountain West honors, while three were named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
During the summer of 2015, Finkbeiner took the Aggie women on an eight-day trip to the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. On the trip, the team played against local club and university teams, hosted coaches and children’s clinics and toured the sights.
In the 2013-14 season, Finkbeiner led the Aggies to a 15-16 overall record, while going 8-10 in league play in their first year in the Mountain West. The team advanced to the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Championships.
That year, Finkbeiner coached guard Jennifer Schlott to several accolades and records. Schlott finished the year third in the nation in scoring with 26.2 points per game. She was named the Mountain West Player of the Year and became USU’s first-ever AP All-American, earning honorable mention accolades. She became the all-time leading scorer at Utah State, ending her career with 1,556 points. Schlott was invited to a WNBA training camp with the Indiana Fever, before signing a professional contract to play for Tapiolan Honka in Finland.
Off the court, the 2013-14 Aggies also succeeded academically. Six student-athletes received academic all-Mountain West honors, while two were named Mountain West Scholar-Athletes.
In Finkbeiner’s debut season in 2012-13, the Aggies achieved an 18-14 record. USU finished second in the Western Athletic Conference standings for the second-straight season with a 14-4 mark. Under the direction of Finkbeiner, Utah State advanced to the postseason for the third-straight season, as the Aggies played in the Women’s Basketball Invitational. USU finished the season second in the nation in free throw percentage with a school and WAC record 80.1 percent. Three players were honored by the WAC as Devyn Christensen earned first-team honors, while Schlott and Jenna Johnson earned second- and third-team honors, respectively.
The Aggies also found success in the classroom under Finkbeiner as five players earned academic all-WAC honors.
Finkbeiner came to Utah State from Oral Roberts in Tulsa, Okla., where he spent 16 years as head coach. During his tenure at ORU, the Golden Eagles averaged 17 wins per season and advanced to postseason play eight times with five trips to the NCAA Tournament and three appearances in the WNIT.
As the head coach at Oral Roberts, Finkbeiner led the Golden Eagles to seven Summit League regular season and tournament titles and six 20-win seasons. At ORU, Finkbeiner coached five All-Americans, eight conference players of the year, five conference newcomers of the year and 26 all-conference selections. He was named conference coach of the year twice during his ORU tenure.
In his six years prior to ORU, Finkbeiner led Southern Nazarene to three-straight NAIA national titles and a combined 99-4 record from 1994 to 1996. Finkbeiner posted a 186-20 record in six seasons at SNU. During his career at Southern Nazarene, Finkbeiner coached nine NAIA All-Americans and a two-time NAIA Player of the Year, while five of his players went on to play professional basketball overseas.
During his tenure at Southern Nazarene, Finkbeiner’s coaching achievements did not go unnoticed, as he was named the NAIA National Coach of the Year in 1994, 1995 and 1996. He was also named as the College Sports Magazine and Converse National Coach of the Year in 1995. Finkbeiner was named the NAIA District 9 Coach of the Year in 1993 and the Sooner Athletic Conference Coach of the Year from 1992 to 1996.
Finkbeiner, a native of Southern California, attended Southern Nazarene in Oklahoma City, Okla., from 1975-80, where he was a four-year letterwinner. In that time, he was selected as a Christian Collegiate All-American in 1978. Finkbeiner graduated with a bachelor’s of science degree in physical education and completed his master’s degree in physical education at Northwest Missouri State University. Along with coaching at SNU, Finkbeiner worked as a professor in the kinesiology and sports management department.
Finkbeiner and his wife, Reva, have five children two daughters-in-law and two sons-in-law: Isaac (Angela), Ben (Alycia), Corban (Nathan), Micha (Tommy) and Bethany and 11 grandchildren. His son, Ben, is the associate head coach for the Aggies.