*coachBy Gary Nager

People who actually follow women’s college basketball can debate ad nauseum whether University of Tennessee legend Pat Summit or University of Connecticut coach Gino Auriemma is the greatest women’s college hoops coach of all time, but there is no doubt as to who is the greatest women’s basketball coach in the history of the University of South Florida — and that coach is longtime New Tampa resident José Fernandez (seated in photo, right). 

Now in his 15th year at USF, Fernandez came into this season with a 234-208 overall record, a winning percentage of .529, despite the fact no prior USF women’s basketball coach had ever earned more than 100 wins or lasted more than eight seasons at the school.  

And, Fernandez has actually upped his career winning percentage to .545 this year, as the hard-charging Lady Bulls had an impressive 21-5 overall record, and a sparkling 12-2 mark in the American Athletic Conference (“The American,” one of two leagues to succeed the former Big East Conference) at our press time. The highlight so far this season, he says, was “cracking the AP (Associated Press) Top-25 for the first time ever” earlier this month.

“We’ve been in the top 25 in the USA Today Coaches Poll before,” says Fernandez, “but never in the AP Poll.”

And, although the Lady Bulls lost on the road — to unranked East Carolina (18-8, 9-6) — just two games after reaching their highest-ever AP rank, USF then rebounded with an almost-too-easy 79-46 home romp over Tulsa (14-11, 9-5), and Fernandez says the rest of this year’s regular season will decide whether USF ends up as a dark horse to go deep into the NCAA Women’s Championship bracket or somehow ends up back in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT).

The Bulls only had four games left on their 2014-15 regular season schedule at our press time, but of the first three of those four opponents, only Temple (13-14, but 9-5 in the AAC) had a winning conference record. 

Therefore, the game that ultimately may decide the Bulls’ ‘14-’15 postseason fate is the last game on the regular season docket — a home rematch on Monday, March 2, against Auriemma and #1 ranked U Conn  (25-1, 14-0), who soundly beat the Bulls 92-50 in Storrs on January 18. 

Fernandez, who has led USF to two previous NCAA Women’s tourneys (with an overall record of 1-2 in those appearances), has his  team believing they can compete at the highest level this season and win at least a couple of games in the women’s “Big Dance” this time around.

He also has had his team in the WNIT eight times in his previous 14 seasons (he led USF to the WNIT title in 2008-09), but Fernandez says a home win over Connecticut would be his biggest ever. 

Although USF doesn’t usually fill the Sun Dome, Fernandez is hoping that at least some of he and his wife Tonya’s many friends in New Tampa will try to be on hand for the game against U Conn.

“Two of our kids graduated from (New Tampa’s Paul R.) Wharton (High) and we have one there now,” he says. “We’ve lived all over New Tampa since I got here in 2000. A lot of locals know my family but have never come to see us play, so I hope to have our biggest crowd ever on hand against Connecticut.”

For USF Women’s hoops tickets and more info, visit GoUSFBulls.com. 

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