Weber State men’s basketball head coach Eric Duft has promoted Dan Russell to the Associate Head Coach with the Wildcats.
Russell is entering his third season on the Weber State coaching staff. He joined the Wildcat staff in June 2022 as Duft’s first hire as head coach.
In two years with the Wildcats, Russell has helped Weber State to back-to-back winning seasons and top four finishes in the Big Sky.
“I am very excited to announce the promotion of Dan Russell to Associate Head Coach,” Duft said. “Dan has been a championship coach at all levels and has worked tirelessly since his arrival to bring great energy and knowledge to our program. We look forward to continuing to move Weber State basketball forward to a championship level. In addition, Dan and his wife Keisha are great examples to our players and our invested in their development on and off the court.”
Las season Russell helped lead Weber State to a 20-win season, including a road win at No. 23 Saint Mary’s, WSU’s first win against a ranked opponent in 23 years. Weber State also beat NCAA Tournament teams Yale and South Dakota State during the season.
He also helped lead Weber State’s Dillon Jones to Big Sky MVP honors and first-team All-District and All-Big Sky honors. Jones was also a top-five finalist for the Julius Erving Award, given to the top small forward in the country, and was drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
During his first season as an assistant coach, 2022-23, he helped the Wildcats to an 18-win season and a semifinal appearance in the Big Sky Tournament.
Russell came to Weber State after spending the previous three seasons as an assistant coach with Montana State in the Big Sky. During his time at MSU, he helped lead the Bobcats to three winning seasons, including Big Sky regular season and tournament titles and a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2022.
At Montana State, Russell helped with the development of the Bobcat guards and coached multiple players to All-Big Sky honors.
Russell also has head coaching experience. Prior to Montana State, he spent 11 seasons at Casper College in his hometown of Casper, Wyoming, including six seasons as the head coach. During his time as head coach, he posted a 145-52 overall record and led the team to six-straight region tournaments and two regional championship games.
He also played two seasons at Casper College and finished playing at Black Hills State University before earning his bachelor’s degree at the University of Wyoming. While in Laramie, he worked on Heath Schroyer’s staff as a graduate assistant coach with the Cowboys.
