Recently Named Associate Head Coach Gabe Lazo Is Now Headed To Tennessee

A week after being promoted, the associate head coach is headed to Knoxville to aid another budding program.

Jan 7, 2024; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Sam Purcell / Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

KNOXVILLE, Tenn - The Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team has lost another key piece to its coaching staff.

Gabe Lazo was brought in by head coach Sam Purcell and spent the last two years helping the Lady Bulldogs by assisting as their defensive coordinator and being a key recruiter during his tenure in Starkville.

He has helped State reach back-to-back 20-win seasons and was instrumental for the Bulldogs in having the No. 3 recruiting class during the 2023-24 season for MSU. It played dividends before the collapse the women suffered after strange circumstances that left the team on the outside looking in for the NCAA Tournament.

Starkville will always be special to me. Relationships aren’t transactional to me … and will never be… thank you for AN AMAZING TWO YEARS. HAIL STATE!! Love yall pic.twitter.com/RaCRxUZ5xf

— Coach Lazo (@CoachGabeLazo) April 16, 2024

Many players and coaches have already exited Mississippi State due to the portal or new opportunities elsewhere. Some big names are expected to commit to MSU in the next few days now that the transfer portal is officially open. It is a new time day and age in the world of college sports and this is just the beginning of a new era.