New UGA women’s basketball coach says she’s ‘loud,’ ‘passionate,’ ‘feisty’
A murmur radiated throughout Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall on Tuesday morning, as a sea of people gathered to welcome new women’s basketball coach Ayla Guzzardo to Georgia.
The Redcoat Marching Band lined the entrance, waiting to serenade Guzzardo with “Glory” while fans mingled around the facility — all eager to kick off a new era of Georgia women’s basketball.
Guzzardo was named the fourth head coach of the program Sunday, replacing Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, who the team mutually parted ways with Saturday.
Georgia made Guzzardo’s position official Tuesday with a news conference followed by an availability with the local media. In attendance were University of Georgia President Jere Morehead and athletic director Josh Brooks.
Here is everything Guzzardo and Brooks said.
On if she imagined her journey would take her to Georgia …
AG: “I didn’t imagine it until I met Josh. This place is a special place. It was always a goal of mine, but once I got to Athens, and I realized how important and how special it was, I knew it was the right place for me.”
On how she would describe herself as a player …
AG: “If you watch us play our games, you’ll see the exact same way my coaching style translates to me as a player. I was loud. I was energetic, passionate, intense. In the same way, feisty, but I try to mimic that with my players.”
On what her last 72 hours have been like …
AG: “Whirlwind. I’ve got probably another 300 messages I’m probably still trying to respond to on my phone, but it’s been exciting. A lot of support, and I think the support from my previous schools and the fan base here has always been unmatched.”
On her relationship with Brooks …
AG: “Josh is a very important person back where I’m from. I don’t think we talk about that enough, but he’s up there. It was (LSU women’s basketball coach) Kim Mulkey, (Ole Miss football coach Pete) Golding and then Josh.”
JB: “Hammond (Louisiana) is taking over the SEC. Think about that. Between Ayla, myself, Pete Golding and Kim Mulkey, Hammond is taking over the SEC. Shout out.”
AG: “It is. It was a special place. But we have some of the same values in our life. We have some of the same core expectations. For us, we have the same alignment, and I think that’s important.”
On if her family knew Brooks’ family …
JB: “I don’t know. I’m sure if we dig deep enough that we probably have a lot of relatives that — Hammond is a small town. I’m sure we do. I’m confident we have a lot of mutual friends, but we didn’t know each other, per se. But after I saw them play in Iowa, and I looked up her bio, and I’m like, ‘Oh, the coach is actually from my hometown.’ That’s when I started keeping up with her and just following her career.”
On what stood out to Brooks about Guzzardo …
JB: “Not to make it about myself, but her career reminded me a lot of my career because I needed that first break. I came from Louisiana Monroe and grinded my way up. Kind of came up from the midmajor level and how her team played — the tenacity, the style — if I was a basketball coach, it’s exactly how I would coach. So that was exciting. But just the connection piece, it’s so important to me. We share the same values based on the same hometown. Where we come from, the connection with people is very important. So that was the instant thing.”
On reaching out to former Georgia players in the transfer portal …
AG: “Definitely, those were the first phone calls I’ve made. Last year was a very special year, so retaining those players is probably the No. 1 priority for me right now.”
On if she has received any positive feedback …
AG: “We have. I’m actually meeting with a few of those players this week. We had great tradition, great history from last year, and we’re going to try to continue that.”
On her approach to building relationships …
AG: “We do that in the early recruiting process. This isn’t just a job for me. This is lifelong relationships, lifelong friendships that we’re creating. So, my job is not done when they graduate. My job is to continue to watch them get a job, have families, get married, succeed in life. So, I think it’s bigger than just basketball for us.”
On the biggest differences between midmajor programs and Georgia …
AG: “The biggest difference is probably the demand, but we have great people around us. My staff is going to be everywhere. They’re going to be doing a lot of different things. And I get to administration, they’re handling everything from Point A to Point B, so there’s no mishaps, there’s no lapses of anything. So, I think it’d probably be staff.”
On bringing players with her to Georgia …
AG: “Definitely. We’re about relationships, so to me, they’re family. As long as they enter the portal, it’s definitely a possibility.”
On what she learned from turning around McNeese State …
AG: “You don’t want to just rebuild. You almost want to reload. And that’s what we’re going to kind of take into consideration here. It’s not a rebuild, it’s a reload. Georgia has phenomenal facilities, phenomenal resources. I talk about the alignment all the time, and it starts from the top. We’re going to get the best players that we can get here in Georgia.”
On if she has hired a staff yet …
AG: “We’re in the process. Retention is important, so I’m going to try to see if I can retain some of the current employees and then possibly bring some, but we’re going to definitely look at hiring soon.”
On building relationships in a transactional era of college sports with NIL …
AG: “We have to build that relationship. They have to be able to want to play for me. It starts at the top, and I know my assistants are going to work hard building that relationship, but that’s my job also. It’s supposed to be me knowing what’s going on in their life, helping them through things. My door is going to be always open. If you come in and the door shuts, something’s wrong, make sure you knock. My door is always open, so it’s going to be (that) relationship piece.”
About the Author
Olivia Sayer joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in May 2025 as an intern on the sports beat. She is earning a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia with a minor in sport management and a sports media certificate. Olivia previously held the titles of digital and assistant sports editor at The Red & Black.
