Head Coach, Women’s Basketball | University of Utah

When she first became the head coach of women’s basketball at the University of Utah, Lynne Roberts found herself facing one of the toughest challenges of her career: taking on a failing team and turning her players into some of the most notable in the country.

“When I took the job eight years ago, the program was dead last, and nobody thought we could do it,” she says. “[But] I saw the potential. You fall down a lot and you fail a lot, but I believe in the vision of how I’m doing things.”

That vision has amounted to some pretty impressive stats. Under her leadership, the University of Utah has seen its audience for women’s basketball grow from an average of 500 people to over 10,000. The team achieved a 27-5 overall record and an NCAA Sweet 16 appearance during the 2022-2023 season. Alissa Pili, one of the team’s forwards, was named Pac-12 Player of the Year and earned First Team All-Conference. 

Roberts’ unique ability to help her players tap into their full potential has made it possible for the team to become nothing short of a force to be reckoned with—a level of success that has snowballed beyond collegiate athletics. Over the past season, she and her team implemented a community series called Utes Beyond the Paint, which allowed the team to direct their growing audience toward a cause. Each conference weekend, the team partnered with a different local nonprofit organization for a service project. At the game, the organization would be highlighted in front of the crowd, who could make donations via QR codes. The featured organization director was also made an honorary coach that week, and Roberts herself donated $100 to the cause for every three-pointer shot her team made.

“My family and I love Salt Lake City. I think it’s the best place in the country,” she says. “I don’t have the ability to run a nonprofit, but I try to think of ways I can use our platform to bring awareness to organizations that aren’t mainstream.” The team has plans to grow Utes Beyond the Paint next season.

When asked about her advice for other women in athletics, Roberts urges them to quit apologizing for themselves and quit apologizing for having a seat at the table. “[Women] have superpowers that we can use to our strengths,” she says.