Adams begins her third year at the helm of the Aggie program after a 2023-24 season in which she led an Aggie team which featured eight newcomers to 13 wins, including an upset win in the Conference USA Quarterfinals over No. 3 seed FIU.
Upon her arrival, Adams brought 28 years of coaching experience which includes six NCAA Tournament appearances at three different schools and 212 wins as a Division I head coach. She was also the starting point guard on the Tennessee Lady Vols' 1991 National Champion squad during her time as a player – learning under the late, great Pat Summitt.
Adams carries a tradition of excellence everywhere she goes – helping lead seven different teams to conference championships as a head coach while reaching the postseason nine times in 11 seasons. She also signed a total of five top-40 recruiting classes during her years with The University of Missouri-Kansas City and Wichita State in addition to helping sign a top-five recruiting class at Minnesota that eventually reached the Final Four in their senior season.
Adams has also been a part of a series of firsts at several stops along the way. Most notably, she led Murray State to its first Ohio Valley Conference Tournament title while also leading Wichita State to its first Missouri Valley Conference regular season title, first MVC Tournament title and first NCAA Tournament appearance.
New Mexico State | 2022-Present | Head Coach
Last year, she helped coach guard Molly Kaiser who became the first Aggie since the 2019-20 season to earn first team all-conference honors. Kaiser was named First Team All-CUSA following a season in which she averaged a team-high 14.9 points per game while starting all 31 games.
Kaiser was one of three players to see an increase in their scoring average during the 2023-24 season as Sabou Gueye and Sianny Sanchez-Oliver each increased their total from the previous year.
In her second season with the program, she led the Aggies to their first winning season in four years, culminating in the programs first postseason victory in nearly 30 years – second program history - with a 51-41 win over Illinois-Chicago in the Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI).
Adams became just the third coach in program history to lead their team to the postseason in their first season with the school, joining Brook Atkinson (2017-2018, WNIT) and Joe McKeown (1986-1987, NCAA) as the only coaches at NM State to do so.
Additionally, Adams helped the Aggies to their first winning season in conference play in four years with a 10-8 record, finishing sixth in the WAC – six spots higher than the WAC Preseason Media Polls had indicated prior to the season. The 2022-2023 Aggies also saw their first win against in-state rival New Mexico in 6 years with their 73-64 overtime victory at the Pan-Am on November 15th, 2022.
From an individual standpoint, eight players on Adams’ roster improved their scoring averages from the season prior, including Sylena Peterson (+7.1) and Molly Kaiser (+4.8), who both improved their scoring production drastically under Adams in her first season.
On December 29th, 2022, Adams secured her 200th career win, and first road win as the Aggies head coach after a 67-59 victory over UTRGV in Edinburg, Texas.
In her first season with the Aggies, Jody Adams made it an emphasis to reestablish a winning culture at NM State with her “Big Belief” mantra that could be seen echoed throughout the season. Today, Adams has lots of people believing in her team after she was able to turn a program that had only won 10 games the prior season, to a team that won 18 games with a 10-8 record in conference play – the most since the 2018-2019 season – including the team’s first taste of postseason play in four years.
Adams’ squad was formally invited to participate in the 2023 Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI) where they would go on to win a pair of games against Illinois-Chicago and East Tennessee State. This would mark the programs first postseason win since 1994 (WNIT) making Adams only the third coach in program history to take an Aggies squad to the postseason in their first year at the helm.
The Aggies also saw wins against Mountain West, Big Sky and WCC opponents, including their first win over in-state rival New Mexico since 2016.
On December 29th, 2022, Adams secured her 200th career win and first road win as the NM State head coach when her team defeated UTRGV, 67-59.
Adams accomplished this despite having seven returners from the 2021-2022 season, even helping two of them improve their scoring averages by over 4.5 points: Sylena Peterson (+7.1) and Molly Kaiser (+4.8).
Southern Illinois | 2018-20 (Assistant Coach), 2020-22 (Associate Head Coach)
Adams spent her most recent four years on staff at Southern Illinois where she served as an assistant coach for two years until being named the associate head coach ahead of the 2020-21 season. Just last season, she helped lead the Salukis to their first regular-season MVC title since the 2006-07 season as SIU finished the regular season with a 20-8 overall record and a 15-3 record in league play.
While at Southern Illinois she coached four First Team All-MVC honorees, including Abby Brockmeyer who was named the 2022 Jackie Stiles MVC Player of the Year.
In 2019-20, she assisted in leading the Salukis to their sixth straight winning record, including knocking off a ranked opponent (Missouri State) for the first time since 1991.
Derby High School | 2017-18 | Assistant Coach
Prior to her addition to the Southern Illinois staff, Adams made a stop in Derby, Kansas, where she was the assistant coach at Derby High School in 2017-18. While there, she helped lead the Panthers to their first state title in program history as they finished the season with a 23-1 record and won the Kansas 6A State title.
Wichita State | 2008-17 | Head Coach
In her time as a head coach at Wichita State, she completed a total transformation of the program to help lead WSU to unprecedented success in her nine seasons as the bench boss. When Adams arrived, the Shockers had won 20-plus games only once in program history and had never made an NCAA appearance, won a MVC title or MVC Tournament title.
Wichita State had an incredible run of success under Adams, as the Shockers posted four-straight 20-plus win seasons and made six-straight postseason appearances from 2009-15, which included three-straight MVC regular season and tournament titles from 2013-15, resulting in a trio of NCAA Tournament appearances. While at Wichita State, Adams was also twice named Missouri Valley Coach of the Year, earning the accolade in 2013 and 2015.
Sporting a record of 161-115 as the leader of the Shockers, Adams remains the school's all-time winningest head coach. That record includes a 29-win season in 2014-15 which marks the Wichita State program record for most wins in a single season.
During her tenure, the Shockers rostered nine First Team All-MVC honorees, including 2015 Jackie Stiles MVC Player of the Year Alex Harden who also claimed honorable mention AP All-America honors in 2015. With the help of Adams, Harden also became the second player in Wichita State history to be drafted to the WNBA when she was selected by the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of the 2015 WNBA draft.
Murray State | 2007-08 | Head Coach
Prior to taking over the reins at Wichita State, Adams spent one season as the head coach of the Murray State Racers. The Racers went 24-8 under Adams on their way to securing the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.
Southern Illinois | 2004-07 | Associate Head Coach
Adams spent her first stint at Southern Illinois as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator under Dana Eikenberg at Southern Illinois for three seasons (2004-07). In this stretch at SIU, Adams helped Southern Illinois claim its first-ever MVC regular-season title in 2006-07.
Kansas City | 2000-04 | Associate Head Coach
Prior to her initial stint at SIU, Adams was the associate head coach at UMKC under Eikenberg from 2000-04 and was named a 2003 AFLAC National Assistant Coach of the Year after she helped UMKC sign some of the best talents in the Kansas City area. Among those recruits was Carlai Moore, who was named to the Mid-Continent Conference All-Freshman team and earned the league's Sixth Woman-of-the-Year Award. Moore eventually followed Adams and Eikenberg to SIU, where she won the 2006 MVC Newcomer of the Year award, and the following year, secured a spot on the All-MVC First Team.
Minnesota | 1997-00 | Assistant Coach
From 1997-00, Adams served as an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota. She was the Gophers' recruiting coordinator and helped Minnesota sign a top-5 national recruiting class prior to the 2000-01 campaign. This class included current Minnesota head coach, WNBA Champion and Olympic gold medalist Lindsay Whalen.
Wake Forest | 1996-97 | Assistant Coach
Before coaching at Minnesota, Adams worked as an assistant coach at Wake Forest for one season. While there, she helped lead the Demon Deacons to the second round of the ACC Tournament in 1996-97.
Auburn | 1994-96 | Assistant Coach
Prior to her time at Wake Forest, Adams was an assistant on Joe Ciampi's staff at Auburn for two seasons. Adams was on the Tiger bench for a pair of NCAA Tournament runs, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 1996.
Tennessee | 1990-93 | Student-Athlete
A 1994 graduate of Tennessee, Adams played four seasons for the Lady Vols under legendary head coach Pat Summitt and was the starting point guard for three Southeastern Conference Championship teams. The Lady Vols advanced to the NCAA Tournament in each of her four years and captured the NCAA's ultimate prize with a national championship in 1991. She began her coaching career as a student assistant with the Lady Vols in 1993.
Personal Life
A native of Cleveland, Tenn., Adams received her B.S. in human performance from Tennessee in 1994. She also has two dogs that are like family – Ace, a boxer, and Della Rose, an American bulldog.
Adams Through the Years
1994-96 | Auburn | Assistant Coach
1996-97 | Wake Forest | Assistant Coach
1997-00 | Minnesota | Assistant Coach
2000-04 | Kansas City | Associate Head Coach
2004-07 | Southern Illinois | Associate Head Coach
2007-08 | Murray State | Head Coach (24-8)
2008-17 | Wichita State | Head Coach (161-115)
2017-18 | Derby High School | Assistant Coach
2018-22 | Southern Illinois | Associate Head Coach
2022-Present | NM State | Head Coach
All-Time Career Record as Head Coach: 225-164 (.578)
Career Record as NM State Head Coach: 31-35 (.470)
