The Optimist
  • Home
  • About
    • Advertise
    • Policies
    • Staff Contacts
    • Jobs
  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Editorials
  • Multimedia
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos
  • Features
  • Print Edition
    • The Pessimist
    • Special Projects
  • Police Log
  • Classifieds
You are here: Home / Sports / ACU inks Golding, Goodenough to five-year extension
Coach Julie Goodenough smiles at the players as she coaches them through the last game of the season. (Photo by Meda Bow)

ACU inks Golding, Goodenough to five-year extension

April 4, 2019 by Owen Simpson

After two historic seasons, two conference championship trophies and two first-ever NCAA tournament appearances, head coaches Joe Golding and Julie Goodenough have been awarded for their accomplishments.

Both coaches have agreed to five-year contract extensions to remain with the Wildcats through the 2023-24 season.

Julie Goodenough, the women’s basketball head coach, is 144-68 in seven seasons at ACU and 433-288 overall in a career that has spanned 25 seasons.

This season, the women finished 23-10 and fourth in the conference at the end of the regular season. But after upsetting top-seeded Lamar in the Southland tournament, the Wildcats capped off a historic season taking down Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the conference tournament championship.

That sent Goodenough and the Wildcats down to Waco to face the Baylor Lady Bears. Ultimately falling in that matchup, 95-38, ACU still finished far above expectations.

“I’m so proud of our team,” Goodenough said. “People don’t remember back in the fall, we were picked sixth in the Southland Conference, and we won the conference championship and played in the NCAA Tournament. I can’t say enough about our team and our program. This is our sixth year to play Division I and we have won three conference championships, so we believe we’re headed in the right direction.”

The Wildcats will lose only one player on their roster for next season setting them up for yet another run at the NCAA tournament.

Meanwhile, head coach Joe Golding for the men’s basketball team had an impressive season as well. He led the Wildcats to their best season in the 98 years of program history. Golding won the Southland conference postseason title giving ACU automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

The 2019 Southland Conference coach of the year finished the 2019 season 27-7 after falling to the number two seed Kentucky Wildcats 79-44 in Jacksonville.

Golding took the coaching job back in 2011 when ACU was still a Div. II program. But in just two years of postseason eligibility after transferring to Div. 1 basketball, he’s put Abilene Christian on the map.

“When you get an extension like this, it’s a direct correlation of having really good players and a great staff,” said Golding. “This staff has been together for a while (led by associate head coach Brette Tanner in his seventh season) and I believe it’s the best staff in our league. I’m proud they are being rewarded as well. This program has never been about me and never will be about me. It’s about the players who have left a legacy and the current players who will continue that legacy and the culture we have built.”

The men’s team lost three key senior starters after this season’s doors closed, but there is much to look forward to for Wildcat basketball.

The Wildcats have already added a standout player Airion Simmons out of Parkview High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Some scouts say he’s one of the top five high school players in the state. The Wildcats are also in the mix for several transfers to help complete next year’s roster.

Director of athletics Allen Ward said he can’t wait to witness the upcoming years for ACU basketball.

“I’m excited about the future of ACU basketball and the impact it can have on ACU,” Ward said. “Our first experience with NCAA March Madness and the incomparable notoriety the university received is evidence of just how powerful Division I basketball can be for a university.”

The Wildcats will be back for more action in Moody alongside Goodenough and Golding next fall looking to repeat as conference champs to make history once more.

Filed Under: Sports

Other Sports:

  • Women’s golf drives for success despite young mid-major status

  • More than money: FBS games bring in revenue, impact program

  • Realignment shakes up the WAC puzzle

About Owen Simpson

- Editor-in-Chief and Sports Director
- ESPN Analyst for ESPN football and basketball

I'm a senior journalism major from Georgetown, Texas. I serve in several roles for the ACU JMC department. For years, I've had a passion in sports and news, and I'm pursuing a career in sports broadcasting, along with any opportunity that presents itself in the media department.

You are here: Home / Sports / ACU inks Golding, Goodenough to five-year extension

Other Sports:

  • Women’s golf drives for success despite young mid-major status

  • More than money: FBS games bring in revenue, impact program

  • Realignment shakes up the WAC puzzle

Follow us online

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Optimist on Twitter

Retweet on Twitter The Optimist Retweeted
ashleyh1607 Ashley Henderson @ashleyh1607 ·
3 Jun

My second year at ACU was full of opportunities that grew me as an individual and a journalist.

In my first year as editor in chief of @acuoptimist, we published six print issues, filmed a 3-hour live election show, and revamped our newscast, all while producing news weekly.

Reply on Twitter 1929734328445178254 Retweet on Twitter 1929734328445178254 1 Like on Twitter 1929734328445178254 1 Twitter 1929734328445178254
Retweet on Twitter The Optimist Retweeted
optimistsports Optimist Sports @optimistsports ·
2 Jun

The Optimist reached out to ACU Athletics, who provided the following statement.

Reply on Twitter 1929676060947632336 Retweet on Twitter 1929676060947632336 1 Like on Twitter 1929676060947632336 1 Twitter 1929676060947632336

Optimist on Facebook

The Optimist

12 months ago

The Optimist

Video

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

The Optimist

2 years ago

The Optimist
"Ending my college education early was always the plan for me, but the things that I have been able to see, experience and examine about ACU’s community were not. I have found immense growth in ACU over the past three and a half years, but ACU still has a long road to climb if it wants to keep catering to students as the world changes around them." To read more of this article visit acuoptimist.com or click the link in our bio. #acu #abilenechristianuniversity #privatechristianuniversity #collegestudentopinion #acuopinion ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Videos

Optimist Newscast Feb. 28, 2024

Our top stories today include a recap of The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940, the ... [Read More…]

  • Optimist Newscast Feb. 21, 2024
  • Optimist Newscast Feb. 14, 2024
  • Optimist Newscast Jan. 24, 2024

Latest Photos

  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
    • Subscribe
    • Policies
    • Advertising Policy
    • Letters to the Editor and Reader Comments
  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Editorials
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Features
  • Advertise
    • Paid Advertisement
  • Police Log

© 2025 ACU Optimist · All Rights Reserved