Texas Takes from the Cats yet Again: Assistant Coach Josephson to Texas

It feels like there are three things you can count on for certain in life- death, taxes, and the Texas Volleyball program poaching someone from Kentucky. That truth reared its ugly head again late Thursday afternoon as Texas announced that the Cats' Associate Head Coach Ben Josephson would be traveling across the Southeastern Conference to join Jerritt Elliott as the Associate Head Coach for the Longhorns for the 2025 season. 

After the Cats downed Texas in four sets to capture the program's first-ever National Title in the spring of 2020, it seems like the Longhorns have had revenge on their mind, starting with the transfer of Kentucky standout Madi Skinner after the completion of the 2021 season. Skinner left the Wildcats after the team suffered an early exit at home to Illinois in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and proceeded to win back-to-back National Championships with the Longhorns in 2022 and 2023.

In 2024, after graduating from Kentucky and leading the Cats to an Elite Eight appearance and an SEC title, star right-side hitter Reagan Rutherford announced that she too would be leaving Lexington to join the Longhorns to team up with Skinner for one final year of college. 

Josephson leaves Lexington after two years, having helped guide the Wildcats to back-to-back Elite Eights and a pair of SEC Championships. His presence on the coaching staff was felt from the very beginning of his tenure in the blue and white as he drew upon his background in the men's and international game to bring a modern and unique approach to the Cats' offense. As a result, Kentucky setter Emma Grome quarterbacked the Kentucky offense to be among the best in the country. 

UK head coach Craig Skinner and the rest of the staff will have work to do in an effort to replace what Josephson brought to the table. But if Skinner's time in Lexington has taught us anything, it's that his ability to evaluate and bring in talent - whether in the form of players on the court or coaches sitting on the sideline - is unmatched. Let's just hope this time the Longhorns won't be able to get their hands on them anytime soon.