Russ Davis, four-time NAIA Coach of the Year, led the Lions to the 2008 NAIA National Championship and is a member of both
the NAIA and Vanguard University Hall of Fame. He is currently first in active NAIA coaches with an overall career winning percentage (0.786) and fourth among active coaches in wins. His squads have captured 12 GSAC titles and he personally has nine GSAC Coach of the Year awards under his belt. Additionally, he is the all-time leader in wins and winning percentage for the GSAC.Â
In all, Davis' teams at Vanguard have made 24 trips to the NAIA National Tournament. The Lions have made five Fab Four appearances (2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2017) at the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Championships, finishing third the first three times before winning the National Championship in 2008. Davis and his squads have been to the Elite Eight 11 times during his coaching tenure. Coach Davis has 33 wins at the NAIA national tournament.
His teams had appeared in 207 straight national polls dating back to 2002, with that streak coming to an end in the 2021-2022 campaign. In addition, Davis’ Lions have been ranked No. 1 in the nation 44 times. Vanguard women’s basketball, under Davis, ranks third in the history of the NAIA in overall number one rankings in coaches’ polls.
Union and Vanguard are the only programs to have spent an entire season ranked #1: Vanguard in 2005-2006 and 2006-2007. Vanguard also holds the GSAC record for the most conference victories in a single season, going undefeated (20-0) in GSAC games in back-to-back seasons from 2005-07.
Six of Davis’ players have been voted as National Players of the Year: 2005, Lisa Faulkner; 2006, Kelley Schmidt; 2007, Jessica Richter; 2010, Bridgette Reyes; 2014, Nicole Ballestero; Claire Lamunu, 2017. No other coach in the NAIA has produced six POY’s. Vanguard has had 16 First-Team All-Americans and 70 NAIA Scholar-Athlete All-Americans under Russ Davis. He also has 18 players as Second or Third Team All-Americans and 14 Honorable Mentions.
Named the WBCA (Women's Basketball Coaches Association) National NAIA Coach of the Year award in 2005 and 2009, and WBCA's Coach of the Year for the West Region in 2006, Davis earned the NAIA's National Coach of Character in 2007 and added the NAIA Coach of the Year to his accolades in 2008.
Russ is a National Rater for the NAIA, and previously served as President and Vice President for the NAIA Women's Basketball Coaches Association. He is also a member of the NAIA All-American committee and serves on the NAIA National Tournament Selection Committee, one of six coaches to be on the board.
Davis has impacted many lives throughout his Vanguard coaching career and he continues to help guide student-athletes on and off the court. Â
