South Georgia Technical College President Dr. John Watford announced that former Lady Jets assistant basketball coach Demetrius Colson of Atlanta has rejoined the Lady Jets as the assistant coach for women’s intercollegiate basketball for the 2019-2020 season. Ciarra Edwards of Florence, AL, also was hired as a part-time women’s basketball assistant coach for the Lady Jets and as an intramural assistant for the college. Colson will work as an instructor as well as an assistant coach.
“We are very fortunate to have these two talented individuals associated with our college and our basketball program,” said South Georgia Technical College President John Watford. “Both Demetrius Colson and Ciarra Edwards know junior college basketball and have been around the sport for a number of years. I think that the experience and knowledge that they bring to the college and to the court will be a definite asset. Ciarra Edwards will also be an asset to our student life and intramural department.”
Colson was a member of the South Georgia Technical College Jets inaugural men’s basketball team as a player in 2001 – 2002 under former head coach Chris Wade and Assistant Coach Steven Wright. He was an All-Conference player in 2002- 2003 when the Jets advanced to the second round of the Georgia Junior College Athletic Association state tournament before losing to the Georgia Perimeter Jaguars 72 – 69. The Jaguars finished 4th in the nation that season.
He earned an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer Information Systems from South Georgia Technical College and attended Georgia Southwestern State University to play basketball for the Hurricanes and pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Physical Education.
Colson returned to South Georgia Technical College in 2008 and worked as the women’s assistant basketball coach under former head coach Brandon Harrell for nearly four years. He left the program in June 2012 to become the women’s assistant basketball coach for Harrell at Georgia Highlands College in Rome.
As the Assistant coach for the women’s intercollege basketball team, Colson will report to Athletic Director and Lady Jets head coach James Frey. He will be responsible for assisting with the coaching, recruiting, scheduling opponents, and training while adhering to the national, state, and local sport guidelines. He will also be responsible for teaching and other duties.
Ciarra Edwards joins South Georgia Technical College after working as an assistant women’s basketball coach at South Plains Community College in Levelland, Texas that was ranked number one in the NJCAA women’s polls in 2018. She was a member of the Shelton State College Women’s Basketball team in 2014 and 2015 and was a JUCO All-Star Game participant and state champion in 2014 and then was the leadership spokesperson and Captain of the team in 2015.
After earning an associate degree from Shelton State in 2015, she attended Mercer University in Macon and was a member of the women’s basketball program for two years. She was on the dean’s list and also helped the Lady Bears to the regular season Southern Conference Championships in 2016 and 2017. As a player she also worked as a coach and a counselor for the Mercer University and Shelton State Community College basketball camps from 2013 – 2016.
Edwards graduated from Mercer University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications in 2017, and then joined South Plains Community College as an assistant women’s basketball coach. South Plains attended the NJCAA national tournament and finished in the Elite Eight.
She will be responsible for assisting in coaching the women’s intercollegiate basketball team at SGTC and working with campus life activities including intramurals, and clubs and organizations. She will report to Athletic Director and Lady Jets head coach James Frey and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Vanessa Wall.
Kezia Conyers was the assistant coach for the Lady Jets from 2013 through 2019 and helped lead the Lady Jets to the national tournament for five of her six years as an assistant coach. The Lady Jets finished in the top sixteen teams in the nation twice and was a member of the elite eight once during those five trips to the NJCAA National Tournament. She left to become the Motlow State women’s head basketball coach in July 2019.
“I am very excited about the additions to the coaching staff at South Georgia Technical College,” said Athletic Director and Head Jets basketball coach James Frey. “Demetrius Colson is very familiar with the college and our athletic program. He has coached against me for a number of years and I am excited to have him sitting on the sidelines with me this season. He will also be an asset in developing our young athletes and encouraging community involvement.”
Coach Frey also had high words of praise for Ciarra Edwards. “Coach Edwards played for an outstanding JUCO coach and team at Shelton State. Then she continued her student athlete career at Mercer University. After graduation, she worked with another premiere JUCO coach and team at South Plains Community College. She is young but will also be an asset to the team as well as to the students here at the college with her work in campus life and intramurals.”
The Lady Jets finished the 2018 – 2019 season 30 – 4, which is the best record in the history of the athletic program for both the men’s and the women’s intercollegiate basketball teams. The Lady Jets were undefeated at 18 – 0 in the conference and earned their fifth trip to the NJCAA National Tournament in seven years. They finished the season ranked 20th nationally and Frey was the GCAA Coach of the Year for the fifth time in seven seasons as the head coach at South Georgia Technical College.