Dawn Staley celebrates her 54th birthday

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley is one of the most successful coaches in women’s basketball. She celebrated her 54th birthday on Saturday and received bags of wishes from several past and present Gamecocks, including Kamilla Cardoso, Chloe Kitts, Raven Johnson, Olivia Thompson and Molly Binetti.

Cardoso and others took to Instagram to wish the coach who guided them to the NCAA title in 2024.

“Happy Birthday to the GOAT herself! May your day be as legendary as you are. Love you coach,” Kamilla Cardoso wrote in her Instagram Story.

South Carolina star Raven Johnson also wished Staley through Instagram.

“Happy birthday to Thee Dawn Staley. Love you coach,” Johnson wrote.

Freshman forward Sahnya Jah wished Staley while calling her coaching a blessing.

“Happy birthday coach such a blessing to be coached by you,” Jah wrote.

Meanwhile, senior guard Olivia Thompson wished Dawn Staley by using a goat emoji in her story.

“🐐 Birthday,” Thompson wrote.

Moreover, South Carolina’s performance coach, Molly Binetti, also wished to share her achievements and their first phone call when she accepted the school’s offer.

“I remember being on the phone with Coach when I accepted the job & she told me ‘We’re going to win a championship together,'” Binetti wrote. “6 years 10 rings 2 Nattys later… You are truly 1 of 1 Staley. HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the absolute best.”

Four-time Coach of the Year Dawn Staley also had an amazing career as a player. She was named the Naismith College Player of the Year in 1991 and 1992 while playing for the University of Virginia. She was unstoppable on the court as she concluded her college career with 2,135 points.

As a coach, she started her career with the Temple Owls and guided them to the Atlantic 10 Tournament championship three times. She was appointed as the coach of South Carolina in 2008 and won three NCAA titles in 2017, 2022 and 2024.

In the 2023-24 season, Staley’s South Carolina was unstoppable, as it concluded the season with an unbeaten 39-0 run.

In the championship, the Gamecocks beat Caitlin Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes 87-75, after which Dawn Staley won her fourth Naismith Coach of the Year award.

South Carolina post a throwback video to thank Dawn Staley

Dawn Staley guided South Carolina to two NCAA titles in the last three years (three overall) after taking over the job in 2008. The unbeatable South Carolina’s social media handle posted a throwback video of the program’s 2023-24 season to pay tribute to Staley.

In its latest championship win in 2024, South Carolina entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed in the Albany I region. The Gamecocks beat Presbyterian, North Carolina, Indiana, Oregon State, NC State and finally Iowa to secure the NCAA title.