MISSOULA — The longest-tenured coach on the Lady Griz coaching staff is making the leap to the Pac-12.
UM assistant coach Jordan Sullivan, a Sidney native and former Lady Griz standout player, has accepted a job as an assistant coach at the University of Utah, the UM athletic department announced on Friday morning.
Sullivan will join the Utes' program next week.
“I’m so grateful to have gotten to work at this amazing place and be surrounded by supportive people,” she said in a UM media release. “That makes it hard to leave. From the players to the staff to the department to the community, how do you not feel sadness to leave such an amazing place like Montana? Those feelings mean it was really awesome to be here.”
Sullivan, who played for the Lady Griz from 2010-14, was an assistant coach for Montana the last five seasons. She was hired by former coach Shannon Schweyen to be the team's director of operations in 2016 and was promoted to full-time assistant coach in 2017.
Sullivan was retained on new Lady Griz coach Brian Holsinger's staff last summer as his first hire, and she kept her role as the team's recruiting coordinator which she's had the last few seasons. She caught up with MTN Sports last summer about what the program meant to her and staying in Missoula to coach.
Our family grew by 2️⃣!
Please welcome our new Assistant Coach Jordan Sullivan and our new Creative Director for Marketing & Recruiting Samantha Michel to the Utah family!
📰➡ https://t.co/UUWNKNZ8tv#GoUtes pic.twitter.com/96YxC92oLb
— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) May 13, 2022
Utah also made Sullivan's hiring official on Friday.
“Jordan is a special individual, someone who is hard working and has the highest character,” Holsinger said. “We adore Jordan and wish her nothing but the best. Her contributions to this program, first as a player and then as a coach, cannot be overstated. She will forever be a Lady Griz.”
As a player at Montana, Sullivan played in a then-record 129 games after her prep career at Sidney High School. She saw the team win 81 games during her time at UM and make three trips to the NCAA Tournament.
As a senior in 2013-14, Sullivan was a second-team All-Big Sky Conference player. She played professionally in Denmark and Luxembourg after her playing career at Montana.
