Launching Pad

McNeese a place for careers to take off

By Jim Gazzolo

While all eyes were on McNeese players as the transfer portal was about to open last week, Ayla Guzzardo’s move blindsided fans.

Just days after Heath Schroyer left his Athletic Director position at McNeese for an administrative job at LSU, Guzzardo joined him in the Southeastern Conference. 

The women’s basketball coach at McNeese took the top job with Georgia after turning down a couple of other positions. It was a move the coach said she had to make.

“This is a dream come true for me,” said Guzzardo. “I loved my time at McNeese, but this is an opportunity I could not pass up for my family and me.”

Guzzardo led the Cowgirls to a record 29-6 campaign and third regular-season Southland Conference title in program history. That quick turnaround made an impact on several bigger school A.D.s. 

It is also the hard work she learned on this level that made Guzzardo the coach she is today.

“I’ll tell you, coming from the mid-major level, we've gotten our hands dirty a lot, and we're not afraid to continue to do that," she said at her introductory press conference in Georgia. "We know how to work hard. I'm going to surround myself with winners, from my staff to the players. We know how to win, and we're going to do that consistently.”

One of the reasons Guzzardo took the job at McNeese was to gain exposure to these types of opportunities; she just didn’t figure it would happen so fast. Despite years of success at SLC rival Southeastern, Guzzardo needed McNeese’s brand to get her name out.

I can’t get to where I want to go from Southeastern (Louisiana), but I can from McNeese,” she said.

She is not alone. Will Wade used McNeese to rebuild his brand and is now back at LSU. 

Then there is the story of Quadir Copeland. He remade himself in his one season with the Cowboys before moving back into the ACC at North Carolina State with Wade. 

Copeland made himself into a future pro player with a huge season with the Wolfpack. 

This may not be what McNeese fans want to hear, but that seems to be the role of this school right now. Good people are coming here and making a name for themselves.

And it is becoming a win-win situation for all.

Jim Gazzolo is a freelance writer who covers sports in Southwest Louisiana. He is also the host of Poke Nation, which airs weekly on CBS Lake Charles.