(Editor's note: University of Montana media release)
MISSOULA -- Brian Holsinger, who has spent 13 seasons in the Pac-12 Conference and has more than two decades of college coaching experience, has been named the next head coach of the Montana women’s basketball program.
Holsinger, who was the head coach at Montana Tech for two seasons (2005-07) before moving on to an assistant position at Washington State (2007-15), has spent the last five seasons at Oregon State, which has become a national power under coach Scott Rueck.
Holsinger signed a four-year contract on Monday night, which needs to be approved by the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.
“I want to first thank President (Seth) Bodnar, athletic director Kent Haslam and the members of the search committee for this amazing opportunity,” Holsinger said in a media release. “I am deeply honored, humbled and grateful to be the next head coach of the Lady Griz.
“This program is steeped in tradition, and I am well aware of what this program not only means to the University of Montana but also to the state.
“I am excited to get to work and build a team of young women that will grow in all aspects of their lives and continue the tradition of a program that this community and state will be proud of.”
Holsinger becomes just the fourth coach of the Lady Griz since they became an intercollegiate athletics program in the late 1970s.
Robin Selvig (1978-16) led the program for 38 years and won 865 games. He was followed by Shannon Schweyen (2016-20) and Mike Petrino, who coached Montana this past season.
“First I want to acknowledge and thank Mike Petrino and his staff, Jordan Sullivan, Nate Covill and Jace Henderson, for the leadership they provided this last year,” Haslam said in a media release.
“It was a very different year. You add in a pandemic and it makes it even more unique. They always operated with the highest class and worked extremely hard. The university and this athletic department will always be thankful for their hard work.”
The position was opened on March 15 and underwent a national search. Four finalists were brought to campus for interviews last week.
Selvig built a program at Montana that produced 36 winning seasons over 38 years, 31 20-win seasons, 24 conference championships and made 21 NCAA Tournament appearances.
“If that sort of legacy doesn’t scare you a little bit, you’re not human, but I’ve never been afraid of a challenge. I think it’s a good thing. It’s healthy, it drives you,” said Holsinger. “It makes you want to do great things.
“Once this gets announced, he will be the first phone call I make. I have the utmost respect for him and who he is and what he’s done. Any advice I can get from him will be welcomed.”
The coming season won’t be Holsinger’s first time coaching in Dahlberg Arena. He was in his first year as a Division I assistant, in 2007-08, when Washington State traveled to Missoula.
Even though it was a Tuesday night in mid-December, the game drew more than 3,100 fans. Montana won 74-54.
Washington State returned at the end of the 2013-14 season for a first-round WNIT game. Montana, down its point guard who suffered a knee injury in the Big Sky Conference championship game, won 90-78.
Holsinger played one season of college basketball at Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore., before finishing his dual degrees in biology and chemistry from Western Washington in 1999.
His first college coaching job came shortly thereafter, at The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, Calif., where he worked from 1999 to 2005. He was the head coach at Montana Tech in 2005-06 and 2006-07.
He joined June Daugherty’s staff at Washington State the next season and spent eight years in Pullman. He was hired by Rueck at Oregon State shortly after the Beavers had gone to the Final Four at the end of the 2015-16 season.
Oregon State won 31 games in Holsinger’s first year in Corvallis and won its third consecutive Pac-12 title. The Beavers advanced to the NCAA Tournament each season Holsinger was on staff, minus 2019-20 when the tournament was canceled because of COVID-19.
Oregon State reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last month before falling to Final Four-qualifier South Carolina.
“I am excited for Brian in this new opportunity,” said Rueck. “I am grateful for all he has contributed to our program over the last five years at Oregon State. He brought great energy, positivity, expertise, community and a warm sense of hospitality.
“Brian’s impact on our program always went above and beyond coaching in his care for the students and their families, as he provided an outstanding complement to the vision of our program and family atmosphere.
“Brian, Stacey and the kids will be missed both personally and professionally, and I wish them the very best.”
At Oregon State, Holsinger was surrounded in the basketball offices by former Griz and Lady Griz.
Wayne Tinkle, who both played and coached at Montana, is the head men’s coach. His wife is the former Lisa McLeod, who was inducted into the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in 2011 for her playing career with the Lady Griz.
On Rueck’s staff is the former Katie Baker, the 2012-13 Big Sky Conference Most Valuable Player for Montana.
“Wayne has been an unbelievable resource for me. I’ve gotten a ton of great insight from him,” said Holsinger.
“The respect and things Katie shared with me about the Lady Griz, you can tell it still means a ton to her. It’s her program. She is still passionate about it. How it impacted her is exactly what I want to do for the young women who are there now and will be there in the future.”
Holsinger and his wife, Stacey, have two daughters, Brooklyn (10) and Quinn (8), and a son, Kellen (6).
