Jermaine Woods is finalizing a deal with the Norfolk State women’s basketball team to become the next head coach. Woods is looking to replicate his historic season with Coppin State as he looks ahead to next season with new adventures and opportunities with the Spartans.
Coppin State failed to make the NCAA tournament since 2008. They had their best season in a long time in 2024-25, picking up 19 wins and just 15 losses. This was good enough for third in MEAC. Coppin State made it to the second round of the Women’s NIT tournament before being eliminated by Cleveland State.
Jermaine Woods’ Breakout Year at Coppin State Sets the Stage for Homecoming to Norfolk State
Coppin State’s 19 wins in 2024-25 was the most since 2011. Coppin State also participated in their first Women’s NIT Tournament since 2009 under Woods in 2024-25. It’s safe to say that with this turnaround to Coppin State, Woods became a prime candidate for many head coaching vacancies.
Woods could have had an even better season had Coppin State’s starting point guard not gone down for nearly two months. However, even through the major injuries to the team, Woods still had an excellent year for Coppin State, and that should not go unnoticed.
The Norfolk State Spartans are coming off an impressive season. They finished first in MEAC and picked up a fantastic 30 wins and just five losses. Unfortunately, Norfolk State was eliminated in the first round of the Women’s NIT Tournament against No. 4 ranked Maryland.
The Spartans were led by strong play from senior guard Diamond Johnson, who led the team in points, averaging 18.9 per game. Johnson also led in assists and steals, with 4.1 and 3.6, respectively. On defense, senior forward Kierra Wheeler was arguably the team’s biggest force. She led the team in rebounds and blocks, with 8.9 and 2.4, respectively.
Despite the very good season, former head coach Larry Vickers went to coach the Auburn women’s basketball team. Vickers left Norfolk after seven years with the team and obtained an excellent 177-99 record with the Spartans. He also led the Spartans to three consecutive MEAC championships and NCAA tournament appearances.
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Norfolk State will be counting on Woods to continue their hot streak and bring them back to the promised land in the NCAA Women’s NIT Tournament. Woods joins Norfolk State as an alumni of the school and, perhaps more importantly, someone from the Norfolk community. He has ties there to make him want to do that much better and make his alma mater proud.
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