Pruitt and Godfrey join Prairie View's Coaching Staff

POSTED: October 12, 2020 -- 7:20 p.m. CT

Sandy Pugh, Prairie View A&M women's basketball head coach, announced two additions to her coaching staff Monday.

Pugh announced the addition of Courtney G. Pruitt as assistant head coach to her staff; and, Pugh also announced the addition of Chris Godfrey as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator to her staff.

Pruitt joins the Panthers following a five-year stint as Alcorn State's head coach, where she oversaw the development of some of the top players within the Southwestern Athletic Conference during her tenure and authored one of the country's most aggressive defensive units.

"I'm so thrilled to have inked the deal to get Courtney to Prairie View A&M," Head Coach Sandy Pugh said. "Wow. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have her be a part of our basketball team. To be able to get a coach of her pedigree and experience to work with our ladies is simply amazing. I didn't want it to leak or for anybody to steal her while she was a free agent. I have the utmost respect for Courtney and what she's accomplished in her coaching career as well as the amount of basketball knowledge she has."

During the 2019-20 season, she presided over the nation's number one defense for steals, steals per game and turnovers forced per game while placing inside the top-20 for turnover margin as well. Alcorn more than tripled the team's win total from a season prior and ultimately posted its highest win total in eight seasons as well as its best conference record in three years. Alcorn State finished ranked in the top 15 nationally for steals per game three times in Pruitt's tenure.

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Godfrey's track record is highlighted by the successful development of standout junior college players that have gone on to greater opportunities, within and outside of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

"Chris is a young, hungry go-getter that's made tremendous sacrifices over his coaching career," Coach Pugh said. "He's hard-working, dedicated, loyal … he's what you want from a young coach coming into the door. I look forward to getting him here and for (Courtney Pruitt and I) to work with him. I think the dynamic of this coaching staff can be tremendous, and I'm excited about it. I pride myself on putting together a coaching staff that not only can work together, but work off one another and bounce ideas off each other. I think that this staff, now that's been rounded out with Chris, is just that. We have an amazing staff as far as our collaboration, and our kids are going to benefit from this."

Godfrey joins the Panthers' program after a successful stint at Northwest Florida State College, where he served in a similar role for a squad that conference championship and a regional tournament title while finishing ranked No. 3 in the nation. Specializing in post player development, Godfrey helped a pair of Raiders earn NJCAA All-American honors.

"I've always had a passion for working with students that come from distinct populations," Godfrey said. "The main thing I'm bringing to the table is passion and energy. This is my first opportunity to coach at the Division I level, and I'm excited for that. We've got a coaching staff with a lot of experience compared to me, so I plan to make up for that by showing my passion for the game and bringing a youthful exuberance to the staff. This is something that's very important to me, especially with the opportunity to work at an HBCU given that our social climate is what it is. This is a step I wanted to take for my professional career."

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