BUTTE — It took five times for former Belt girls basketball head coach, Jeff Graham, to get the call that he got a head coaching job at the college level. That fifth time is thanks to Montana Tech where he will be the new head women’s basketball coach, replacing former head coach Carly Sanon.
Graham is no stranger to winning, having dominated at the Class C girls basketball level, winning six state titles in the last 15 years at Belt. His athletic programs as athletic director of Belt have also done extremely well. He’ll have his hands full with a short turnaround and taking over a roster that went 13-19 last season. The good news is that he returns two second team all-conference starters in Tavia Rooney and former Belt standout and player Dani Urick.
“Success breeds success," he said. "That's our motto. Tradition never graduates and hopefully we'll get that here.”
Known for his fiery and energetic coaching style, the hope for Montana Tech is that it translates to the college level, but judging by his track record, there should be no problem.
“We might change two or three different times during the year," Graham said. "We're going to learn and get to know the kids and hopefully be ready to roll come tournament time.”
Graham is no stranger to the Frontier Conference as a standout basketball player at three different schools and will look to use his knowledge of the in-state talent from his time as a high school coach to get a recruiting edge.
