Lady Vols basketball has found its next head coach.

After spending one season at Marshall, sources confirm that Kim Caldwell is departing the Herd for Tennessee.

She will replace Kellie Harper who was fired from the position on Monday.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

Caldwell earned the job after the second modern coaching search in program history. Harper was the first to earn it after the firing of Holly Warlick who was promoted from Pat Summitt's staff.

She comes in with eight years of experience as a college head coach but one at the Division I level. She led Marshall to a 26-7 overall record and 17-1 mark in Sun Belt conference play. This was good enough to win the conference regular season and tournament titles.

The championship was the first conference regular season title for the program since 1989 and first tournament crown since 1997.

This was enough to push the team to the school's second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. The Herd matched up with 4-seed Virginia Tech as a 13-seed but would fall in the Round of 64.

This turnaround comes after a 17-14 year that featured a 9-9 mark in Sun Belt play before Caldwell took over.

Marshall led the country in 3-pointers attempted and was third in 3-pointers made. It was also third in turnover margin and second in forced turnovers throughout the season.

Caldwell boasts experience at the Division II level, as well. She a National Championship in 2022 with Glenville State before reaching the Final Four in 2023.

Overall, her head coaching record sits at 217-31 (.875) in her eight years.

Before her head coaching experience, she was an assistant at Ohio Valley (2011-2013) and Sacramento State (2013-2016).

Caldwell's playing days were spent at Glenville State, as well. She earned 2011 student-athlete of the year in the WVIAC. She played from 2007-2011.

Danny White: "From the beginning, our goal has been to find a dynamic head coach who can restore our women's basketball program to national prominence. Kim Caldwell is the ideal person to lead us. Kim has a winning formula that she has successfully implemented everywhere she has coached, with a fast-paced, high-octane offense and pressure defense that has led to remarkable results. In this new era of college sports, it was vital that we found an innovative head coach with a strong track record of winning titles. We are eager to return the Lady Vols to a championship level, and we're confident that Kim Caldwell is the coach who can lead us back to the top.”

Kim Caldwell: “I am honored and humbled to accept the role as head coach of this historic program at the University of Tennessee. I can’t help but reflect on accepting the Pat Summitt Trophy three seasons ago and be moved by the great responsibility and opportunity of now leading and building upon the incredible Lady Vol tradition she built. I am so excited to get to work and can’t wait to see what we all can accomplish together.”

–––––

– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.

– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.

– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @ByNoahTaylor, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media.

–––––