MONROE, La. --- The ULM men's basketball staff received a big boost in experience on Thursday afternoon when head coach Orlando Early announced the addition of 28-year coaching veteran Jimmy Voight to his staff.
With more than 400 career head coaching victories, including a 260-139 record at the junior college level, Voight will assume the position of associate head coach for the Warhawk men's team. His hire is pending final approval by the University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors.
“We are really excited to add Jimmy Voight to our staff,” Early said. “He will come in here as the associate head coach and that is exactly what he is. He has been a head coach for the last 13 years and has over 28 years of head coaching experience. He has been very successful everywhere he has been. Jimmy will bring us a lot of experience on the bench and has a lot of recruiting contacts. He will help our program work towards that next level in the Sun Belt.”
Over the past three seasons, Voight has rebuilt the men's basketball program at New Mexico Junior College. Inheriting a team that had struggled prior to his arrival in 2006-07, he led NMJC to a 15-15 record in his first campaign and a 50-40 mark overall.
In his final season with the Thunderbirds, Voight led NMJC to a 21-9 overall record, the program's first season of 20 or more wins in 13 years. NMJC went 12-2 in non-conference action and landed four individuals on the all-conference squad.
Under Voight's tutelage, Chris Mast was named WJCAC All-Region V in addition to All-Conference First Team this past season.
Prior to his three years at NMJC, Voight served for five seasons as the head coach at Eastern Oklahoma State College, located in Wilburton, Okla., and of Bacone College, a NAIA institution in Muskogee, Okla.
During that 10-year stretch, Voight recruited and coached four student-athletes to All-America status. He was named Division II Men's Division I Coach of the Year and Region II Men's Coach of the Year in 1999 following a Region II championship with Bacone College.
All told, Voight has seen 30 of his student-athletes named first team all-conference and more than 20 named to their respective all-region teams. His teams have posted 20 or more wins on nine occasions during his 13-year head coaching career.
During a five-year run in Oklahoma ? including his final three seasons at Bacone and his first two seasons at Eastern Oklahoma ? Voight led his teams to the championship game. His 1998-99 Bacone squad claimed the region championship and posted a program-high 32-4 record.
“My wife and I came and visited Monroe and met with Orlando and I was tremendously impressed with both him and the university,” Voight said. “We share a lot of mutual friends in the business and they have had great things to say about him. As each day has passed I have become that much more excited about joining the staff at ULM and competing for the Sun Belt Championship.”
After completing his education with a master's degree in secondary education from Union College, Voight began his coaching career at the prep ranks where he enjoyed successful runs in both Kentucky and Oklahoma. He earned his undergraduate degree in health and education from Cameron University.
Voight assumes the staff position vacated by assistant coach Gus Hauser who was added to Cliff Ellis' staff at Coastal Carolina.
