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University of North Texas Athletics
Staff Directory
Will Watkins
- Title:
- Assistant Coach, Director of Recruiting and Player Development
- Email:
- Alma Mater:
- Wisconsin-Parkside, 2019
Will Watkins just finished his first season as an assistant coach and director of recruiting and player development for the UNT women’s basketball program after being hired in April 2025.
In the 2025-26 season, North Texas went 19-14 and came within a victory of the American Conference tournament finals. The Mean Green ranked top three in the league in both scoring offense and defense and set the program record for three-pointers in a season with 181. Sharpshooters Andi Schissler and Aysia Proctor were largely responsible for the record-breaking effort, sinking 59 apiece to crack the top five on the program’s all-time single-season list.
Another highlight of Watkins’ debut season was the emergence of Megan Nestor, who went from the NAIA level to Division I star. One of the most dominant posts in the sport, Nestor averaged 12.8 points and 14.1 rebounds per game and led the nation in boards while breaking nearly every UNT and American Conference rebounding record. She ranked top 10 in the country with 21 double doubles and received several American postseason accolades, including Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Conference.
Watkins made a short move up to Denton from UT Arlington, where he was the director of player development for two years. In his time there, the Mavericks posted a pair of winning seasons and received a berth to the 2025 WNIT.
Before his time in Arlington, Watkins had a pair of stints with the WNBA’s Dallas Wings working in various roles, including basketball analytics, video coordinator and basketball operations assistant. In between his stops with the Wings, he served as the video coordinator for Wisconsin in 2022.
His original familiarity with the Burton system stemmed from a video coordinator role at Texas A&M-Commerce during the 2019-20 campaign. In his lone year on staff, the Lions went 28-3 before the NCAA Tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. He moved on the next year to serve as a graduate assistant at Eastern New Mexico.
He spent nearly three years as a front office intern with the Milwaukee Bucks while attending Wisconsin-Parkside. Watkins graduated from there in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in communications and media studies.
COACHING HISTORY
2025-Present: UNT, Assistant Coach/Director of Recruiting & Player Development
2023-25: UTA, Director of Player Development
2022-23: Dallas Wings, Basketball Analytics/Video Coordinator
2021-22: Wisconsin, Video Coordinator
2021: Dallas Wings, Basketball Operations Assistant
2020-21: Eastern New Mexico, Graduate Assistant
2019-20: Texas A&M-Commerce, Video Coordinator
In the 2025-26 season, North Texas went 19-14 and came within a victory of the American Conference tournament finals. The Mean Green ranked top three in the league in both scoring offense and defense and set the program record for three-pointers in a season with 181. Sharpshooters Andi Schissler and Aysia Proctor were largely responsible for the record-breaking effort, sinking 59 apiece to crack the top five on the program’s all-time single-season list.
Another highlight of Watkins’ debut season was the emergence of Megan Nestor, who went from the NAIA level to Division I star. One of the most dominant posts in the sport, Nestor averaged 12.8 points and 14.1 rebounds per game and led the nation in boards while breaking nearly every UNT and American Conference rebounding record. She ranked top 10 in the country with 21 double doubles and received several American postseason accolades, including Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Conference.
Watkins made a short move up to Denton from UT Arlington, where he was the director of player development for two years. In his time there, the Mavericks posted a pair of winning seasons and received a berth to the 2025 WNIT.
Before his time in Arlington, Watkins had a pair of stints with the WNBA’s Dallas Wings working in various roles, including basketball analytics, video coordinator and basketball operations assistant. In between his stops with the Wings, he served as the video coordinator for Wisconsin in 2022.
His original familiarity with the Burton system stemmed from a video coordinator role at Texas A&M-Commerce during the 2019-20 campaign. In his lone year on staff, the Lions went 28-3 before the NCAA Tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. He moved on the next year to serve as a graduate assistant at Eastern New Mexico.
He spent nearly three years as a front office intern with the Milwaukee Bucks while attending Wisconsin-Parkside. Watkins graduated from there in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in communications and media studies.
COACHING HISTORY
2025-Present: UNT, Assistant Coach/Director of Recruiting & Player Development
2023-25: UTA, Director of Player Development
2022-23: Dallas Wings, Basketball Analytics/Video Coordinator
2021-22: Wisconsin, Video Coordinator
2021: Dallas Wings, Basketball Operations Assistant
2020-21: Eastern New Mexico, Graduate Assistant
2019-20: Texas A&M-Commerce, Video Coordinator
Spring Football 2026 Media Availability 4/08 | Mean Green FB
Wednesday, April 08
Spring Football 2026 Media Availability 4/01 | Mean Green FB
Wednesday, April 01
Broadcast Highlights vs ACU | Mean Green SB
Thursday, March 26
Spring Football 2026 Media Availability 3/25 | Mean Green FB
Wednesday, March 25
