Years at BYU
2002-2008
Coaching Statistics
Head Coach
Year School Over. Conf. Conf. Finish National Finish
2005 BYU 25-4 14-21st NCAA First Round
2006 BYU 25-6 13-3 2nd NCAA Second Round
2007 BYU 24-8 12-4 T2nd NCAA Regional Finals
Assistant Coach
Year School Over.Conf. Conf. Finish National Finish
2004 BYU 19-11 9-5 3rd
2003 BYU 24-9 10-43rd NCAA Second Round
2002 BYU 14-19 7-7 4th
2001 Kan. St. 20-815-5 3rd NCAA Second Round
2000 Kan. St. 22-814-6 2nd NCAA Regional Semis
1999 Ark. St. 28-7 14-2 1st NCAA First Round
1998 Ark. St. 23-11 12-2 1st
1997 Mon. St. 19-12 9-7 4th
1996 Mon. St. 16-12 7-9 4th
Jason Watson was named the head coach of BYU's women's volleyball program on Feb. 17, 2005, after serving for three years as an assistant with the team.
In his three seasons at the helm, he compiled a 74-18 (.804) overall record while leading the Cougars to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances and a return to the national rankings. He was named the Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year in 2005 after posting a 25-4 record in his first season as a head coach and leading the Cougars to their first MWC regular-season title since 1999. In 2007, he guided the Cougars to the NCAA Tournament Regional Finals for the first time since 1998 and helped the program achieve a national ranking as high as No. 9.
Prior to his head-coaching debut, Watson served 11 years as an assistant coach at four universities. After an All-American playing career at BYU, Watson coached two seasons under former U.S. Olympic coach and two-time NCAA Coach of the Year Carl McGown with the Cougars' men's squad in 1995-96. Watson began his women's volleyball coaching career with a two-year stint at Montana State, helping the Bobcats to their best record in almost 15 years. He then spent two years at Arkansas State during which the Lady Indians won consecutive Sun Belt Conference titles.
Watson also served as the associate head coach at Kansas State in 2001 and as an assistant coach in 2000, where he helped guide the Wildcats to two consecutive NCAA Tournament berths. He returned to BYU in 2002 as an assistant head coach for the women's team under Karen Lamb.
Overall, Watson has directed or assisted in taking teams to the NCAA Tournament in seven of the last nine seasons. In addition to his 74-18 (.804) head-coaching record, Watson's teams have compiled a 185-97 (.656) record in his nine years as an NCAA women's volleyball assistant coach.
Coaching Career
Watson was honored as the 2005 MWC Coach of the Year in his first season as a head coach, becoming the first BYU women's volleyball head coach to win a league coaching award since Elaine Michaelis won Western Athletic Conference Mountain Division honors in 1997. Under Watson, the Cougars won the league regular-season title for the first time since 1999. BYU's 25-4 overall record in Watson's first year was its best since 1998, and the Cougars' 20-0 start to the season was the second-best in school history. Watson's Cougars were ranked as high as No. 12 in the nation during the season, finishing listed No. 26, and were invited to their 22nd NCAA Tournament.
The winning trend continued in 2006 with a 25-6 overall record and a second-round NCAA Tournament appearance, their 23rd NCAA Tournament berth in the 26 years of the event. The Cougars finished the year ranked No. 20 in the nation, their first final national ranking since 2001. Despite battling injuries throughout the season, BYU recorded a win over No. 4 Stanford during the year and set a program attendance record with an average of 1,902 fans.
The 2007 season brought continued success as Watson guided his Cougars to their first NCAA Tournament Regional Finals since 1998, defeating No. 6 Washington and No. 16 Middle Tennessee State along the way before falling at top-ranked and eventual-national champion Penn State. BYU's 24-8 overall record helped vault the Cougars to a No. 12 final national ranking, their highest final ranking since 1997, after being ranked as high as No. 9 during the season. The season also saw the top crowd in the history of the Smith Fieldhouse with 4,509 fans against Utah. In Watson's three years at BYU, he compiled a 33-4 record on Elaine Michaelis Court.
In Watson's offense, three-time All-MWC setter Lauren Richards Evans finished 19th in the nation and third all-time at BYU with 13.12 assists per game while middle blocker and MWC Player of the Year Lindsy Hartsock was second in the nation in hitting percentage with a .444 mark. Both received AVCA All-America Honorable Mention recognition.
Watson coached four All-Americans during his BYU tenure, including three-time All-MWC setter Lauren Richards Evans (2005 AVCA Honorable Mention), 2005 MWC Player of the Year Lindsy Hartsock (2005 AVCA Honorable Mention), two-time All-MWC middle blocker Rachel Dyer (2007 AVCA Honorable Mention) and outside hitter Chelsea Goodman, who received AVCA and Volleyball Magazine Honorable Mention honors as a junior in 2006 before becoming the first Cougar named to an All-America Team since 2000 with an AVCA Third Team selection in 2007. Watson's offensive systems helped the Cougar annually rank among the nation's best in hitting percentage, kills per game and assists per game.
In his three years as an assistant at BYU in charge of the Cougar defense, Watson quickly established BYU as a top defensive squad. The Cougars led the MWC and were 13th and fifth in the nation in blocks per game in 2003 and 2004, respectively. BYU also led the MWC in digs in 2003 with 1,729, the most the Cougars had put up since 1997. Hartsock was named the 2004 Blocker of the Year by Collegiate Volleyball Update and finished second in the nation averaging 1.86 blocks per game in 2004 while libero Uila Crabbe set BYU and MWC single-season records in digs with 435 in 2003 under Watson's direction.
At Kansas State, Watson helped the Wildcats earn back-to-back top-three finishes in the Big 12 Conference and consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament while achieving a 42-17 (.712) overall record and a 29-11 (.725) mark in the Big 12. Coaching the setters and coordinating the offense, Watson established a powerful attack that produced several team and individual records.
Also in 2001, with Watson serving as associate head coach, KSU broke the school record for conference wins with a 15-5 mark and swept the season series with a school-best six league opponents. Two players earned All-Big 12 honors and one honorable-mention All-America recognition as school records were broken for kills, total attacks and 20-kill matches. KSU also earned the right to host the NCAA first and second rounds for the first time since the field was expanded to 64 teams and for only the second time in the school's history. In 2000, Watson helped guide an offense that set the school record with 2,024 kills and totaled 1,828 assists (No. 2 in school history at the time), 4,864 total attacks (No. 3 in school history) and a .245 team hitting percentage (No. 4 in school history). Under Watson's tutelage, setter Disney Bronnenberg finished second nationally in assists, averaging 15.01 assists per game.
Prior to his time at KSU, Watson helped Arkansas State advance to the NCAA Tournament in 1999 after winning consecutive Sun Belt Conference regular-season titles in 1998 and 1999. He helped the Lady Indians post a 51-18 (.739) record and coached a number of all-league performers, including Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Jessica Barney, who led the league in assists with 1,457 in 1999. Watson was responsible for the team's offensive schemes and setter training while coordinating the program's recruiting efforts.
Watson spent two seasons as an assistant at Montana State, helping the Bobcats to a 35-24 (.593) record. In 1997, the Bobcats finished 19-12, the program's best mark since 1983. In 1996, the team went 16-12 and made its first-ever Big Sky Conference Tournament appearance.
Playing Career
As a player, Watson was a four-year starter and two-time captain from 1990-94 as the BYU men's program grew from its infancy to a national power. After a 2-25 season in the program's second year as an NCAA sport, the Cougars achieved a 21-6 record and No. 2 national ranking in Watson's senior season in 1994. Watson is still BYU's all-time assist leader with 4,649 and single-game assist record holder with 128 against Hawai'i on March 27, 1993. He was named a second-team American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American, Volleyball Magazine honorable-mention All-American and a member of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Third Team in 1994. He was a member of the Australian Men's National Team from 1990-91 and a member of the Junior National Team from 1987-90.
Personal
A physical education and sports business management graduate of BYU in 1995, Watson is a native of Homebush, Australia. He and his wife, Larissa, have two sons and one daughter.