Jill Lytle Wilson Selected to Lead Virginia Tech Volleyball as Head Coach

Nationally-respected coach, proven recruiter joins Hokies after 10-year stint at LSU

January 12, 2017

BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech President Dr. Timothy D. Sands and Director of Athletics Whit Babcock announced Thursday that Jill Lytle Wilson has formally accepted an offer to become head coach of Virginia Tech’s volleyball program.

“We are excited to welcome Jill and her husband, Jared, to Virginia Tech,” Babcock said. “Jill served as an integral component of an LSU program that became a perennial NCAA tournament team during her tenure in the highly-competitive Southeastern Conference. We heard from some of the most respected coaches in the country about Jill’s many talents, and their sentiments were very consistent that the school that recruited her away from her alma mater was going to be fortunate to have Jill lead their volleyball program.”

Wilson becomes the fifth head coach in the 40-year history of the women’s volleyball program at Tech. She joins the Hokies after an extremely successful run on the bench in Baton Rouge where, as the recruiting coordinator, she signed five top-30 recruiting classes according to PrepVolleyball.com. She also helped lead the Tigers to six NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2009 SEC Championship, as well as 25-win seasons in 2007, 2009 and 2010. The Tigers averaged over 20 wins per season during her time on the LSU staff.

“One of the consistent themes that impressed us about Jill was her ability to evaluate, recruit and develop successful student-athletes,” added Virginia Tech Deputy AD Desiree Reed-Francois, who led the search. “A talented player in her own right at LSU, Jill’s history as a teammate and servant off the court also spoke volumes about why we felt she would be a wonderful addition to our culture of Ut Prosim at Virginia Tech.”

“I am thrilled and humbled to accept this opportunity to serve as head volleyball coach at Virginia Tech,” Lytle Wilson said. “I’ve been extremely fortunate to have learned so much from all the coaches that I played for and worked with over the years. I’m especially appreciative of Fran Flory having faith in me as a student-athlete, and later as an assistant coach for her at LSU. I owe her, my administration at LSU and all our student-athletes a huge debt of gratitude. I can’t wait to meet all our Virginia Tech student-athletes and get to work in Blacksburg.”

Along with her reputation as a staunch recruiter, Lytle Wilson helped produce 15 All-SEC selections, four American Volleyball Coaches Association All-South Region First Team picks and an AVCA First Team All-American and SEC Player of the Year in middle blocker Brittnee Cooper.

“We are very proud of and excited for Jill,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “She is a special person and coach. She has influenced and shaped many lives here at LSU. Not only has she helped our student athletes become better volleyball players, she has also helped them become successful, strong women. She is the ultimate professional and she will be a great head coach. She has left her mark at LSU and while we will miss her here, we know she will be a great addition to the Virginia Tech coaching staff.”

“Congrats to Virginia Tech for doing the work to hire Jill Wilson,” added Kathy DeBoer, Executive Director of the American Volleyball Coaches Association. “Jill is experienced, driven and passionate about what she does and has been recruited by many schools. Obviously, in Virginia Tech and this administration, she found the right fit!”

“Jill Wilson will do a great job for the Hokie volleyball program,” said North Carolina head volleyball coach Joe Sagula. “She has the motivation and passion for the game to compete at a high level. As a young coach, she has been a student of the game and has had an impact at every level. Jill is a professional in every way and she will be a great addition to the coaching cadre in the ACC.”

No stranger to the ACC, Wilson was an assistant at North Carolina from 2002-04 before serving as the top assistant at Wake Forest in 2006. She coached two All-Americans, an ACC Player of the Year and helped lead the Tar Heels to the 2002 regular season ACC Championship and an NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance. With the Demon Deacons, Wilson trained outside and right side hitters along with assisting in recruiting prospective student-athletes and organizing all team travel.

Lytle Wilson broke into coaching in 2001 as a graduate assistant coach at Tennessee-Martin. The Skyhawks finished the campaign with a 24-7 record and won the Ohio Valley Conference regular season championship.

A four-year starter at outside hitter at LSU from 1997-2000, Wilson ranked sixth in the SEC with 23 service aces during her senior campaign that also saw the Tigers appear in the 2000 SEC Tournament finals.

Lytle Wilson exemplified the Virginia Tech spirit of Ut Prosim while she was a student-athlete. She was the Tigers' representative on the women's at-large SEC Good Works Team in 1999-00 and she was named the LSU Student-Athlete Volunteer of the Year in 2000.

The Richmond, Texas, native graduated from LSU with a B.S. in business administration with concentration in pre-law. While at UT-Martin, Wilson pursued graduate studies in health and human performance.

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