Hokies, Megan Duffy Hire Jen Hoover As Assistant Coach

Megan Duffy and Virginia Tech announced the hiring of Jen Hoover as the program’s third assistant coach Monday.

“Coach Hoover brings a wealth of knowledge to our program, including deep experience as a head coach and player in the ACC,” Duffy said in the Hokies’ release. “From our first conversation, I knew Jen would be a great fit. She has the energy needed to continue the winning tradition of Hokie basketball and can develop top talent at an elite level. She knows what it takes to lead and connect with female athletes in this evolving era of women’s college basketball. She’s an excellent addition to an already strong staff.”

Hoover comes to the Hokies from Kentucky, where she served as an assistant coach for two seasons. She brings 30 years of Division I experience to Blacksburg, including 11 as a head coach — 10 of which were at Wake Forest.

The Roanoke native (William Byrd) was the head coach of the Demon Deacons, her alma mater, for 10 seasons from 2012-22, a stint that included three WNIT berths and an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2021.

Hoover left Winston-Salem as the winningest coach in program history with a 142-170 (.455) record. She spent one season (2011-12) as the head coach of High Point, where she posted a 20-13 record and went to the WNIT.

“I am both thrilled and grateful to join Coach Duffy and the entire Virginia Tech family,” Hoover said in the aforementioned release. “Not only is she a proven winner with a knack for player development, but her character and integrity shine through in everything she does. Returning to the ACC and coming home to coach at Virginia Tech is an incredible honor! I’m eager to get to work building strong relationships with our student-athletes, collaborating with our staff and immersing myself in the unwavering passion of Hokie Nation.”

Her East Coast ties span decades. As a player with the Demon Deacons, she finished her career with a school-record 1,728 points and 1,006 rebounds. She also held program records for field goals (763), field goal percentage (60.7%) and double-doubles (50). An All-American in 1991, she was a three-time All-ACC performer and led the program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament in 1988. She was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

After getting her start in coaching at the college level at Kansas City in 1994, she moved back east and had two-year stints at VCU (1996-98), East Carolina (1998-00) and James Madison (2000-02).

After spending one season at Memphis in 2002-03, she joined the staff of Hall of Famer Debbie Ryan at Virginia, where she spent four years — three as an assistant. She helped produce two top-15 recruiting classes, which featured juco All-American Aisha Mohammed and McDonald’s All-American Monica Wright. The Cavaliers had back-to-back 20-win seasons, an NCAA Tournament berth and two trips to the WNIT with her on staff.

Hoover had a second stint at Memphis in 2007-08 before spending three years (2008-11) as an assistant at Cal, where she went to the Sweet Sixteen and two WNITs. She was named head coach at High Point in 2011 and was the Maggie Dixon Division I Rookie Coach of the Year.

In 10 seasons at Wake Forest from 2012-22, she mentored back-to-back First Team All-ACC selections in Ivana Raca (2021) and Jewel Spear (2022) and produced two WNBA Draft picks — Raca and Dearica Hamby (2015).

She joins Sharnee Zoll-Norman and Itoro Coleman on Duffy’s staff in Blacksburg. They have a combined 58 years of coaching experience, including 13 as head coaches, and are all ACC alums — at Wake Forest (Hoover), Virginia (Zoll-Norman) and Clemson (Coleman), respectively.

Coaching History:

• 2022-24: Kentucky (assistant)
• 2012-22: Wake Forest (head coach)
• 2011-12: High Point (head coach)
• 2008-11: Cal (assistant)
• 2007-08: Memphis (assoc. head coach)
• 2004-07: Virginia (assistant)
• 2003-04: Virginia (director of ops)
• 2002-03: Memphis (assistant)
• 2000-02: James Madison (assistant)
• 1998-00: East Carolina (assistant)
• 1996-98: VCU (assistant)
• 1994-96: Kansas City (assistant)