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Jennie Baranczyk was named the ninth head coach of the Oklahoma women's basketball program on April 10, 2021. She enters her fifth season in Norman in 2025-26 after leading the program through four of its most successful seasons.
Baranczyk (pronounced buh-RON-check), a 13-year head coach, spent nine seasons at Drake before beginning her tenure at Oklahoma in 2021-22. In four seasons with the Sooners, she has restored the program’s national standing, guiding OU to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments, a 2025 Sweet 16 appearance and two conference championships.
Her teams have posted 20-win seasons in 10 of the last 11 years, including four straight at Oklahoma. She has led teams to seven NCAA Tournaments and coached 36 all-conference selections over the last 13 seasons.
In 2025, Baranczyk led Oklahoma through its first season in the Southeastern Conference. The Sooners went 27-8, earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Touranment and advanced to the program’s first Sweet 16 since 2013. OU went 11-5 in league play, tying for fourth in the SEC and advancing to the conference tournament semifinals.
She brought in the nation’s top transfer, Raegan Beers, who earned first-team All-SEC and All-America honors. Payton Verhulst added second-team All-SEC recognition, and the staff secured the No. 15 recruiting class for 2025, highlighted by top-ranked prospect and Gatorade National Player of the Year Aaliyah Chavez.
In 2023-24, Baranczyk led Oklahoma to a second straight Big 12 regular season title and the program’s first outright championship since 2009. The Sooners went 15-3 in league play and 23-10 overall. Baranczyk earned Big 12 Coach of the Year honors and was a semifinalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year award. OU earned a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the second round.
Skylar Vann became OU’s first Big 12 Player of the Year in 15 years, while Payton Verhulst was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. Vann and Verhulst both earned All-Big 12 First Team and All-America honors. Additionally, Nevaeh Tot and Sahara Williams earned All-Big 12 honorable mentions.
In her second season, she guided the Sooners to a share of the 2022-23 Big 12 regular season title with a 14-4 league mark and 26-7 overall record. OU reached the NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive year, earning a program-record six sweeps in conference play and posting the program’s most Big 12 wins in 13 seasons.
Madi Williams earned unanimous All-Big 12 First Team honors, while Taylor Robertson and Ana Llanusa were named to the second team and Skylar Vann earned honorable mention. Vann repeated as Big 12 Sixth Player of the Year and Beatrice Culliton made the All-Freshman Team. Williams became OU’s first WNBA Draft pick since 2013 and joined Robertson on the AP and WBCA All-America lists.
In her first season, Baranczyk orchestrated one of the nation’s top turnarounds. She led the Sooners to a 25-9 record and an NCAA second-round appearance, improving the program by 13 wins from the previous season. She was named a WBCA National Coach of the Year finalist as the team reached 20 wins faster than all but two teams in program history and rose to No. 12 in the AP Poll.
She became the only first-year head coach in OU history to sweep Baylor and Oklahoma State and added a win over Texas. Her four top-25 victories were the most by a first-year Sooner head coach and the most for the program since 2010.
Robertson and Williams were unanimous All-Big 12 First Team picks, the first OU duo to accomplish the feat since 2012. Vann was named Big 12 Sixth Player of the Year and Kelbie Washington earned All-Freshman honors. Robertson earned All-America honorable mention, becoming OU’s first All-American since 2014.
Before Oklahoma, Baranczyk went 192-96 at Drake and led the Bulldogs to six straight 20-win seasons and three NCAA Tournament appearances. She was twice named Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year and her .667 winning percentage ranks fifth in league history.
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| The Baranczyk File |
| Hometown |
Des Moines, Iowa |
| College |
Iowa, 2004 |
| Family |
husband, Scott
son, Eli
daughters, Jordi and Hope |
| Coaching History |
| 2021-present - Oklahoma Head Coach |
| 2012-21 - Drake Head Coach |
| 2010-12 - Colorado Assistant Coach |
| 2006-10 - Marquette Assistant Coach |
| 2004-06 - Kansas State Assistant Coach |
| Playing Experience |
| 2000-04 - University of Iowa |
| Coaching Highlights |
| Three-time National Coach of the Year finalist (2022-2024) |
| 10 postseason appearances (7 NCAA, 3 WNIT) |
| Led Oklahoma to four straight NCAA Tournaments |
| 2024 Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year |
| 2017 and 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year |
| 2017 ESPN Mid-Major Coach of the Year |
| Playing Honors |
| Three-time All-Big Ten Conference selection |
| 2001 Big Ten champions |
| 3 NCAA Tournament appearances |
She led Drake to back-to-back undefeated MVC regular seasons in 2016-17 and 2017-18 and won the conference tournament both years. Drake went 53-1 in league play over a three-year stretch and won a school-record 22 consecutive games in 2016-17. That year, she was named ESPNW Mid-Major Coach of the Year.
Her time at Drake produced 24 all-conference selections, 18 first-team honorees and five MVC Player of the Year awards. She also coached four MVC Freshman of the Year recipients and the program’s first two Defensive Player of the Year winners.
Baranczyk began her coaching career in the Big 12 as an assistant at Kansas State in 2005-06, helping the Wildcats win the WNIT. She later returned to the league as an assistant at Colorado from 2010-12. Between Big 12 stops, she spent four seasons as an assistant at Marquette, where the Golden Eagles posted four postseason appearances and won the 2008 WNIT.
A standout player at Iowa from 2000-04, Baranczyk was a three-time All-Big Ten selection. She helped the Hawkeyes to three NCAA Tournaments and the 2001 Big Ten Tournament title. She finished her career as the only player in program history ranked in the top 10 in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks, and one of just two Hawkeyes with at least 1,700 points and 800 rebounds.
She earned her bachelor's degree in communication studies from Iowa in 2004 and received the Big Ten’s Medal of Honor, given to one student from each university’s graduating class for excellence in scholarship and athletics. She was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection, a WBCA Scholarship Award recipient, a CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree and a semifinalist for the Collegiate Basketball Award for Excellence.
Baranczyk earned a master’s degree in counseling and student development from Kansas State in 2006. She and her husband Scott have a son, Eli, and two daughters, Jordi and Hope.
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