Looking to fill their head women’s basketball coaching vacancy, the Allen Yellow Jackets are looking toward a familiar name that made his mark in the NAIA ranks.
According to a report by HBCU basketball insider Liv Antilla, Allen is expected to yield Kevin Herod from his role as head coach at Florida Memorial.
Herod is a respected name in the HBCU landscape, having spent the past 14 years building championship-caliber teams.
This includes the past two years at Florida Memorial, turning the Lady Lions around from an 11-16 record the previous year to a 24-5 record in his first season.
In addition to claiming the Sun Conference Championship, Herod also led FMU to its first NAIA national tournament win in school history, beating Indiana Northwest 85-76 in the first round.
Before making his way to Florida Memorial, the HBCU coach served as head coach at Langston, leading the team to a 24-8 record and an NAIA tournament berth in 2024.
His most notable stint came during his legendary run at Talladega College, becoming the school’s career wins leader.
Herod produced a 171-68 overall record in his time at the helm, leading them to four NAIA national tournament berths.
This role became vacant when Allen moved on from former University of South Carolina basketball player Olivia Gaines after a two-season stint.
The Yellow Jackets finished this past season with an 18-10 overall record, succeeding Gaines’ first season in which the team went 18-9.
In addition, this marked the first time Allen has finished consecutive seasons with a record at or above .500 since 2019.
