Photo courtesy of Tom Hagerty, Polk State College
Photo courtesy of Tom Hagerty, Polk State College

Coach Q named assistant coach at Missouri State

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (April 24, 2019) – Tallahassee Community College head women's basketball coach Franqua "Q" Bedell has been named assistant head women's basketball coach at Missouri State University. 

Missouri State head coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton announced the hire of Bedell as her top assistant earlier on Wednesday. 

Bedell leaves Tallahassee after a highly-successful six-year run, highlighted by the program's first national championship in 2018. 

"This is a bittersweet moment," said director of athletics Rob Chaney. "Coach Q reshaped the culture of women's basketball at Tallahassee Community College and has built an elite program, as evidenced by our 2018 national championship. At the same time, I'm thrilled to see him receive the opportunity at Missouri State and look forward to watching his career continue on an upward trajectory." 

Hired in 2013, Bedell inherited a program that had gone just 39-38 in the three seasons prior to his arrival. He promptly posted a record of 124-62, including three straight 20-win seasons and four overall, and guided the Eagles to consecutive NJCAA Tournament appearances in 2017 and 2018. 

After an early exit as the No. 7 seed from the 2017 tournament, Tallahassee made a historic run in 2018 as the 11th seed, winning five games in five days to capture the NJCAA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship. Bedell was named Coach of the Tournament and was later tabbed Spalding's NJCAA Division I Women's Basketball Coach of the Year. 

Tallahassee went 25-5 and finished with a No. 6 national ranking in 2018-19.

A national search will begin immediately to find Bedell's successor.