Josh Collins is in his 14th season as the head coach of the SWOSU volleyball team, while also serving as an Assistant Athletic Director for Gameday Operations.
Collins – who became SWOSU Volleyball’s winningest coach in 2016 and surpassed 200 career victories last season – enters the 2025 fall campaign with a 204-171 career record. In 2024, he guided the Bulldogs to their first Great American Conference regular-season championship. That season was historic for the program, as SWOSU became the only team in conference history to feature both the GAC Offensive Player of the Year (Lacy Mott, unanimous selection) and Defensive Player of the Year (Samantha Kuzma). Mott also earned the program’s first All-American honor from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and became the first player in school history to be named First Team All-GAC three times.
In his 13 seasons at the helm of Bulldog Volleyball, Collins has elevated the program to new heights, posting four 20-win campaigns, eight winning seasons, a GAC Tournament Championship, and most recently, the program’s first GAC regular-season title. He notched his 100th career victory on November 18, 2018, with a 3-0 win over Southeastern Oklahoma State, and reached his 200th on November 4, 2024, in a five-set thriller against Oklahoma Baptist. Each of SWOSU’s last three 20-win seasons has earned Collins Great American Conference Coach of the Year honors, with awards coming in 2018, 2021, and most recently in 2024. His first 20-win campaign came in 2015, capped by wins over Northwestern Oklahoma State, Southern Nazarene, and Southern Arkansas to secure the program’s first-ever GAC Tournament Championship. That title also sent the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Division II Tournament appearance, where they faced top-ranked Concordia-St. Paul.
Since becoming the head coach at SWOSU, Collins has been an active member on NCAA committees. He has been as a member of the Regional Advisory Committee for the Central Region since 2014, including serving as the Regional Chair and NCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball National Committee since 2016.
Collins has tutored 23 different players (38 total recipients) who have earned All-Great American Conference honors, including eight First Team selections, four who earned All-NCAA Central Region status, and one All-American following Lacy Mott's honor in 2024. Additionally, Collins has coached 10 players named to the All-GAC Tournament Team, 83 conference academic winners, and three GAC Elite Scholar Athletes. His teams have also earned the AVCA Team Academic Award on seven occasions (2012, 2014-16, 2019, 2023-24) and have won the GAC Sportsmanship Award six times (2014, 2021-S, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024).
In addition to improved play on the court, fan support has continued to increase for the Bulldog Volleyball program since moving into the Pioneer Event Center prior to the 2014 season. SWOSU’s attendance has ranked in the top three in Great American Conference in attendance in each of the past eight seasons, leading the league in 2015, 2018, and for the past four years dating back to 2021. This last season saw SWOSU finish 10-1 at home and average 844 fans in attendance per match -- ranking them sixth in all of NCAA Division II.
After arriving in Weatherford in 2004 from Clarendon College, Collins served as an assistant men’s basketball coach under Scott Reed in 2004-05 and later with former SWOSU athletic director and basketball coach Todd Thurman during the 2006-07 season. Starting in 2005, Collins worked as a dual assistant for SWOSU, assisting with basketball while also helping Bo Pagliasotti start the volleyball program. He served as an assistant volleyball coach for seven seasons before taking over prior to the 2012 season.
Collins, a native of Hedley, Texas, holds two degrees from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in 2006 before completing his master’s degree in Sports Management in 2008. He and his wife, Jamie, were married in June 2012 and reside in Weatherford with their daughter, Indie, and sons, Iver and Iken.
Coach Collins Year-by-Year
| Season |
W |
L |
% |
W |
L |
% |
Finish |
| 2012 |
13 |
20 |
0.393 |
10 |
4 |
0.714 |
4th/GAC |
| 2013 |
13 |
21 |
0.382 |
8 |
6 |
0.571 |
T-4th/GAC |
| 2014 |
8 |
19 |
0.292 |
5 |
9 |
0.357 |
T-8th/GAC |
| 2015 |
22 |
12 |
0.647 |
10 |
6 |
0.625 |
4th/GAC |
| 2016 |
14 |
17 |
0.452 |
9 |
7 |
0.563 |
6th/GAC |
| 2017 |
13 |
20 |
0.394 |
8 |
8 |
0.500 |
T-7th/GAC |
| 2018 |
21 |
7 |
0.750 |
13 |
3 |
0.812 |
T-2nd/GAC |
| 2019 |
16 |
12 |
0.571 |
12 |
4 |
0.750 |
T-2nd/GAC |
| 2021 (S) |
7 |
6 |
0.538 |
6 |
4 |
0.600 |
2nd/GAC Western |
| 2021 |
20 |
8 |
0.714 |
13 |
3 |
0.813 |
T-2nd/GAC |
| 2022 |
17 |
12 |
0.586 |
12 |
4 |
0.750 |
3rd/GAC |
| 2023 |
19 |
9 |
0.679 |
12 |
4 |
0.750 |
3rd/GAC |
| 2024 |
21 |
8 |
0.724 |
15 |
1 |
0.938 |
1st/GAC |
| Totals |
204 |
171 |
0.544 |
133 |
63 |
0.679 |
|
THE COLLINS FILE
Coaching Career
2012 – Present: Southwestern Oklahoma State (Head Volleyball Coach)
Record: 204-171 (.544)
2005 – 11: SWOSU (Assistant Volleyball Coach)
2004 – 07: SWOSU (Assistant Basketball Coach)
Coaching Awards
2024: Great American Conference Coach of the Year
2021: Great American Conference Coach of the Year
2018: Great American Conference Coach of the Year
2018: OklahomaSports.Net Small College Coach of the Year
Education
Southwestern Oklahoma State University
Bachelors of Parks & Recreation, 2006
Masters of Sports Management, 2008
