Coach Sean Woods is entering his fifth season as the leader of the Jaguars. He was named the 14th Head Coach in programs history on April 12, 2018.
He guided the Jaguars to a 17-14 (12-6) record during the 2021-22 season and a third-place finish in the regular season.
During his third season on the bluff, despite dealing with Covid and multiple injuries to starters, Southern finished 8-6 in conference and finished fifth in the regular season.
His second season Coach Woods engineered a 10-win turnaround, winning eight straight games and winning 14 of its last 16 games, finishing second in the regular season one game out of first place. The Jaguars hosted the first round SWAC Tournament Quarterfinals game at home defeating Alabama State 67-53, before heading to the SWAC Tournament Semifinals in Birmingham, AL as one of the hottest teams in the country, the coronavirus pandemic extinguished the season. The Jaguars finished the season 17-15 (13-5).
He led the Jags to a 7-24 record and a 2019 SWAC Quarterfinal Tournament Appearance in his first year.
Prior to arriving on the Bluff, Woods served as an assistant coach at Stetson University (2017-2018).
Coach Woods, has been associated with seven Division I men's basketball programs, enters his 12th season as a Division I head coach and 18th year of coaching at the collegiate level. Woods has tallied an 151-190 record (.443) through his first 11 seasons as a head coach.
Woods compiled a 77-70 record in five seasons (2012-2016) at Morehead State. He gained more wins in his first four seasons than any coach in program history. Woods also mentored 11 professional athletes during his time at Morehead State.
He led the Eagles to a 23-14 overall record and 11-5 Ohio Valley Conference mark, along with a second place finish in the College Basketball Invitational in 2015-16.
With their trip to the championship series of the CBI, Morehead State won four postseason games, the most in program history. MSU's 20-win season marked the seventh in program history. Woods led Morehead State to 20-plus wins twice during his tenure with the Eagles. The 23-wins marked the most victories for the Eagles since they finished the 2010-11 season at 25-10.
He led the Eagles to a 17-7 overall record and 10-6 Ohio Valley Conference mark in 2014-15, despite over half the team suffering significant injuries. In addition the Eagles work in the classroom was a highlight as the team secured a team overall gpa of 3.21.
Woods guided MSU to a 20-14 overall record and 10-6 OVC mark in 2013-14, which was another injury-plagued campaign. The Eagles made their ninth straight league tournament appearance and played in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI).
In his second season at the helm, Morehead State reached the 20-win plateau for just the ninth time. The Eagles also managed the league's best road record (9-7).
Woods shattered a Morehead State record for victories by a second-year head coach in 2013-14. The previous standard was 16. He has also collected more wins (35) than any other bench boss during their first two seasons at MSU.
Woods piloted Morehead State to a 15-18 overall record and 8-8 conference mark in 2012-13, despite inheriting a program with just four scholarship players.
Also during Woods tenure at Morehead State, his teams led the Ohio Valley Conference in rebounding (2013, 2014 & 2016) and was ranked among one of the nation’s best rebounding teams.
Before taking the reigns at Morehead, Woods led Mississippi Valley State to 50 overall wins and 44 Southwestern Athletic Conference victories from 2008-12. The 2011-12 Delta Devils finished 21-13 overall, 17-1 in the SWAC, won the conference tournament and advanced to the school’s fifth-ever NCAA Tournament.
MVSU improved by 14 overall wins and 10 conference victories from his first season to his fourth. Woods was recognized as the 2011-12 SWAC Coach of the Year and earned the prestigious Ben Jobe Award, which honors the top minority coach in NCAA Division I men’s college basketball.
Prior to accepting the head position in Itta Bena, Miss., Woods spent time on the coaching staffs at TCU (2006-08), Texas A&M Corpus Christi (2005-06) and High Point (2003-05). All five of those teams recorded at least 13 wins. His squad at TAMUCC posted a 20-8 overall record.
Woods played in 91 games at Kentucky from 1989-92. He was coached by Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith and Billy Donovan, who have all won national titles as head coaches. Woods, whose #11 jersey hangs in Rupp Arena, was later inducted into the UK Athletic Hall of Fame.
Woods may be best known as one of the “Unforgettable's” from Kentucky’s 1992 East Regional final team. He scored 21 points against Duke in one of the NCAA Tournament’s most memorable games en route to All-Tournament Team honors.
Woods played on nationally-ranked teams as a sophomore, junior and senior at Kentucky. He helped the Wildcats to the Southeastern Conference's best league record (14-4) as a junior before UK won the SEC Tournament (12-4) his senior year.
A starting point guard, Woods still ranks first in Kentucky history for career assists (5.30) and career steals (1.58) per game.
Woods, an Indianapolis native, is a 1988 graduate of Cathedral High School. He was a three-time all-city selection (1986-88), two-time all-state choice (1987-88) and a member of the prestigious Indiana All-Star Team following his final year.
In 2013, Woods was tabbed to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame’s Silver Anniversary Team. The group of honorees included several Division I college basketball players, plus six-time National Basketball Association All-Star Shawn Kemp.
Woods and his wife, Dashaynia, have two sons -- Martiese Morones (34) and DeSean Woods (20) who is currently a member of the SU basketball team.
THE WOODS FILE
Birthdate: March 29, 1970
Age: 52
Hometown: Indianapolis, IN
High School: Cathedral High School
College: Kentucky, 1992
Wife: Dashaynia Woods
Children: Martiese Morones & DeSean Woods
COACHING EXPERIENCE
2003-05 - High Point, Assistant Coach
2005-06 - Texas A&M CC, Assistant Coach
2006-08 - TCU, Assistant Coach
2008-12 - Mississippi Valley, Head Coach
2012-16 - Morehead State, Head Coach
2017-18 - Stetson, Assistant Coach
2018 - Southern, Head Coach
COACHING EXPERIENCE
THE WOODS RECORD
YEAR SCHOOL W-L PCT.
2008-09 MVSU 7-25 .219
2009-10 MVSU 9-23 .281
2010-11 MVSU 13-19 .406
*2011-12 MVSU 21-13 .618
*SWAC Championship - Coach of The Year - Ben Jobe Award
2012-13 Morehead St. 15-18 .445
2013-14 Morehead St. 20-14 .588
2014-15 Morehead St. 17-17 .500
2015-16 Morehead St. 23-14 .622
2016-17 Morehead St. 2-7 .222
2018-19 Southern 7-25 .219
2019-20 Southern 17-15 .531
2020-21 Southern 8-11 .421
2021-22 Southern 17-14 .548
2022-23 Southern 10-10
Totals 14 Years 186-225
MVSU 4 Years 50-80 .385
Morehead St. 5 Years 77-70 .530
Southern 5 Years 59-75
