THE WATT FILE

Personal Information

Full Name: Gavin Finlay Watt
Born: Aug. 11, 1988, in Edinburgh, Scotland
Hometown: Kirkliston, Scotland
College: Napier University (Scotland), 2009
Wife: Eve
Son: Jude

NCAA Coaching Experience

2013-16:
Lehigh, assistant coach
2016-18:
North Carolina, volunteer assistant coach
2018-present:
Tennessee, assistant coach

Playing Experience

2002-10:
City of Edinburgh Volleyball Club
2004-13:
Scotland National Team Program
2007-12:
Great Britain National Team Program
2010-11:
Amiens Metropole VBC (France)
2011-13:
AS Cannes Volleyball Club (France)

2023 VolleyballMag.com's College Coaches Hotshots selection

Gavin Watt concluded his seventh season as an assistant coach with the Tennessee volleyball program in 2024. A decorated former international volleyball standout, he works primarily with the Lady Vols’ offense and setters while also serving as recruiting coordinator.

Multiple players have enjoyed accelerated skill development under Watt’s tutelage at Tennessee, with nine Lady Vols earning All-American status (hitters Erica Treiber, Tessa Grubbs, Breana Runnels, Morgahn Fingall, Jenaisya Moore and Nina Cajic, libero Yelianiz Torres, middle blocker Danielle Mahaffey and setter Caroline Kerr), including nine selections during the last four seasons. Under his guidance, UT has been represented on the AVCA All-Region list 15 times and the All-SEC team on 12 occasions.

Watt has coached two athletes to National Player of the Week status, as Erica Treiber earned the prestigious honor in 2018 and Morgahn Fingall received the distinction in 2022 and 2023. Lady Vols have collected 62 SEC weekly awards during his tenure on Rocky Top, including 16 offensive awards and 10 setter recognitions.

Team success has surged as well thanks to Adams' contributions. Tennessee ascended into the top 20 of the national rankings during his first season, which culminated in a second-place SEC finish and an NCAA Tournament victory. Since then, the Big Orange has been ranked inside the top 20 in five different seasons, including being as high as No. 8 during the 2023 campaign. The Lady Vols have recorded 15 wins over ranked opponents dating to that 2018 season.

A native of Edinburgh, Scotland, Watt has effectively elevated Tennessee’s talent level, assembling highly-rated recruiting classes over the years. The Lady Vol 2020 signing class earned highest honorable mention status from PrepVolleyball.com after bringing in the program's highest-rated player since 2013 when Jasmine Brooks joined the Lady Vols as a top-50 national recruit. In 2021, signee Ava Moes also was rated by PrepVolleyball as a top-75 national prospect.

Ahead of the 2023 season, Watt recruited Jenaisya Moore and Yelianiz Torres from the transfer portal. Both individuals garnered All-America recognition in their lone season on Rocky Top. Following that season, Watt helped sign Hayden Kubik, who was ranked as the No. 1 overall player on PrepVolleyball.com when she signed with Nebraska as part of the 2022 class.

During Watt's most recent class, he helped sign a pair of top recruits from the Sunshine State to highlight the group, landing outside hitter Maggie Dostic and setter Izzy Mogridge. Dostic was ranked 31st nationally by PrepVolleyball.com, making her the top signee in over a decade for the Big Orange. She was the 2024 MaxPreps Player of the Year for Florida and garnered second Team All-American honors. Mogridge, who was the Class 3A Player of the Year as a senior, earned a spot on the 2025 U.S. Girls U19 National Team roster and also played in the 2025 Under Armour All-American Game.

INSTANT IMPACT
Watt’s immense coaching impact was apparent in his very first season, as the Lady Vols finished in the top four in the SEC in hitting percentage, kills per set and assists per set in 2018. Nationally, Tennessee finished that season 14th in kills per set, 29th in assists per set and 34th in hitting percentage.

The team’s kills (1,783) and assists (1,638) totals that year were the program’s highest since 2011.

After Tennessee was picked to finish that 2018 season 10^th in the SEC, Watt and the rest of UT’s new-look staff oversaw the largest single-season turnaround in program history. The Lady Vols achieved a 14-win increase overall from 2017 to 2018, an 11-win increase in SEC action and an eight-place rise in the conference standings. The squad’s 16 SEC wins earned it a second-place finish. Tennessee defeated four top-25 opponents in the process, the most of any SEC team.

On an individual level, Watt helped Sedona Hansen improve her assists average by more than 1.50 per set, increasing her total assists by 365 in 2018. Hansen tallied 13 double-doubles that season, including eight during SEC play. She also totaled four double-doubles against ranked opponents in her season working with Watt.

His mentorship led to Hansen leading the SEC with 13 double-doubles as a junior. She finished her UT career ranked second in program history with 60 double-doubles. She also finished fifth in school history in total assists (3,494) and 11th in digs (1,129)

During the unusual 2020-21 season—contested amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic—setter Natalie Hayward averaged an impressive assists per set at 9.53 to rank fifth in the SEC. That average also stood as the fifth-best in program history during the 25-point rally-scoring era.

That 2020-21 academic year presented many challenges for teams across the country, including schedule adjustments that led to an unprecedented fall and spring collegiate schedule. Tennessee played just eight matches in the fall before returning to the court for 12 contests in the spring.

In the spring, UT went 8-4 to finish the unusual season at 12-8 overall and fifth in the SEC. Tennessee earned three victories against top-16 opponents and was one of only four teams from the SEC ranked among the AVCA’s top-50 programs nationally. During conference play, the Lady Vols ranked second in the SEC in digs, third in kills and blocks and fourth in both hitting percentage and opponent hitting percentage.

The 2020-21 season saw several Lady Vols earn individual accolades. Hayward was named SEC Player and Setter of the Week, outside hitter Lily Felts earned SEC Player and Offensive Player of the Week honors, Morgahn Fingall garnered offensive player of the week recognition and libero Madison Bryant who nabbed defensive player of the week accolades. Two Lady Vols secured postseason honors in 2020-21, as Felts was tabbed to the SEC All-Conference Team and middle blocker Ava Bell landed AVCA Honorable Mention All-Region Honors.

In 2021, the Lady Vols earned their 24th 20-win season in program history and made their 16th NCAA Tournament appearance. Tennessee finished the year 20-10 overall and 11-7 in SEC play as it placed fourth in the league. UT traveled to Ohio State for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament. The Big Orange defeated North Carolina in four sets in the opening round before falling to No. 9 seed Ohio State in four in the second round.

A pair of Lady Vols secured All-SEC Team honors as setter Natalie Hayward and outside hitter Breana Runnels landed spots on the team. Hayward earned All-SEC and AVCA All-Region accolades last season after dishing out 1,162 assists and averaging 10.66 assists per set in 2021. Her assist total was a career-high, while she also achieved career-best marks with 105 kills, a hitting percentage of .394, 296 digs and 81 blocks. Her 10.66 assists per set was a career-high and ranked fourth in the SEC and 31st nationally.

Runnels was tabbed an All-American by VolleyballMag.com after she led the Lady Vols with 394 kills and a 3.75 kills per set average in 2021. Her kills per set average ranked fifth in the SEC and was the 11th-best single-season average in Tennessee history during the rally-scoring era. The Bakersfield, California, native also led the Lady Vols in points per set, averaging 4.15 for a total of 435.5 points over the course of the season. Her average ranked sixth in the conference.

During the 2022 campaign, senior Morgahn Fingall eclipsed the 1,000 career kill mark and earned All-America recognition. She became the 23rd player in program history to reach the 1,000-kill milestone and just the 10th to reach it in the rally-scoring era. She was named to the All-SEC Team for the first time in her career and was tabbed the league's scholar-athlete of the year. The Fairfax, Virginia, native finished the season with a career-high 483 kills - the second-most in Tennessee history during the 25-point rally-scoring era. Her 4.39 kills per set mark was also the second-most by a Lady Vol during the 25-point era.

At setter, Hayward finished her UT career with 3,015 assists - the third most by a Lady Vol in the rally-scoring era and the sixth most in Tennessee history all-time. For the season, she had 1138 assists, 274 digs, 115 kills, 75 blocks and 30 aces. Her 10.05 assists per set career mark ranked sixth all-time in the UT record books, while she was second all-time in Tennessee history with a .366 career attack percentage (min. 100 attacks per season). She closed out her Lady Vol career with 30 double-doubles, which is the seventh most ever by a Lady Vol, and one triple-double.

The Big Orange enjoyed one of the best seasons in in program history in 2023, advancing to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2005, hosting the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 and earning the program's best-ever national seed at No. 10. The Lady Vols finished second in the SEC, which produced a conference-high eight NCAA Tournament teams, with a 15-3 record, and they defeated five ranked opponents throughout the season. The team reached as high as eighth in the AVCA rankings, which marked the highest regular season ranking and second-best ranking ever in program history. Four individuals garnered All-America status from the squad.

Tennessee swept 19 opponents in 31 matches on the year, marking the second-highest total for a single season in program history and the most since having 20 in 1983. UT boasted one of the country's elite offenses, ranking inside the top five nationally and leading the SEC in kills per set (2nd/14.75), assists per set (3rd/13.60) and hitting percentage (4th/.304). Defensively, the Lady Vols paced the SEC in kills per set allowed (11.39) and assists per set allowed (10.78), while ranking second in the conference in both opposing hitting percentage (.194) and aces per set allowed (0.82).

Fingall, the 2023 AVCA Southeast Region Player of the Year and SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was tabbed to the AVCA All-America First Team after finishing with 457 kills on .321 hitting, 193 digs, 84 blocks and 30 aces. She joined Beverly Robinson (1982) as the only Lady Vols in program history to achieve this feat. After being named a Second Team All-American last year, Fingall became the only player in program history to be tabbed a First or Second Team All-American in back-to-back seasons.

Kerr claimed a spot on the AVCA All-America Second Team, joining Julie Knytych (2004-05) and Mary Pollmiller (2011) as the only setters in program history to earn All-America recognition. One of the best setters in the nation, Kerr finished with 1,245 assists, 210 digs, 70 kills, 40 blocks and 33 aces during her first season of competition. She ranked third nationally, second in the SEC and led all NCAA freshmen in assists per set at 11.75.

Despite losing three All-Americans to graduation and five starters from the previous season, the 2024 Tennessee Lady Vols earned a fourth straight bid to the NCAA Tournament and finished in the top half of the SEC. The Big Orange ultimately fell in five sets against No. 18 Georgia Tech in the first round of the postseason.

The Big Orange was led by graduate student Nina Cajic, who garnered AVCA All-America Second Team honors as one of the nation's top offensive players. In her lone season on Rocky Top, Cajic broke the Tennessee single-match record and SEC modern era record for kills (42) as well as UT's 25-point rally-scoring era record for aces in a match (7) and aces per set (0.39) in a single season. She ranked third in aces (41), fourth in kills per set (4.31) and seventh in kills (448) for a single season in school history during the 25-point rally-scoring era.

During Tennessee’s win against Western Michigan on Sept. 19, Cajic had a performance for the ages, tallying 42 kills on 76 attacks and .500 hitting. She shattered the Tennessee all-time record for kills in a match, besting the previous record of 41 kills by Stephanie Ehlers against Washington State on Sept. 24, 1988. She became the first player in SEC history to eclipse 40 kills in a match during the modern era. She is one of two NCAA players during the 25-point rally scoring era to have 40-plus kills in a four-set match. It marked the most kills by a DI player in a match for the season; no other player had more than 38. For the contest, she averaged averaged 10.5 kills per set and had 20 kills in the final frame, including the match winner.

The All-SEC First Team selection led the league in aces per set (0.51) and ranked ninth in kills per set (4.16) during conference play. She was the first Lady Vol during the modern era to post 30 kills in a match, and she did so twice. The AVCA All-Region team member eclipsed 20 kills in five matches throughout the season. Her final numbers for the year were 513 points, 448 kills, 204 digs, 42 blocks, 41 aces and 19 assists.

Redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr garnered All-American status for the second year in a row, becoming the first setter in program history to earn the recognition in multiple seasons. The All-SEC selection finished with 1,069 assists—her second year in a row eclipsing 1,000—to mark the eighth most for a single year during the UT 25-point rally-scoring era, while her 10.28 assists per set ranked sixth. She also ranked sixth in the SEC and 33rd nationally in assists per set.

PRIOR TO TENNESSEE
Watt came to Tennessee after spending one season alongside Rackham Watt at North Carolina as a volunteer assistant. He assisted with practice planning, on-court coaching, coordinating video sessions, scouting opponents, and on-campus recruiting.

Watt also served as associate club director for the NC Elite Volleyball Club, where he was the 17U head coach and lead setter coach.

He transitioned to Chapel Hill after spending four years (2013-16) as the first assistant coach at Lehigh University, helping lead the Mountain Hawks to a 74-49 record. Lehigh posted back-to-back 20-win campaigns for just the second time in program history and also racked up a school-record 14 Patriot League wins in 2014.

Hailing from Scotland, Watt spent four years as the head coach of the 19U Junior & National Teams at the City of Edinburgh Volleyball Club—for which he played from 2002-10—preparing athletes for competing at the national level.

During his playing career, Watt was a setter for the Scotland National and Junior National Teams from 2004-13 and played in the Great Britain National Team program from 2007-12. He was named FINALWHISTLEMEDIA Player of the Year in 2010 with City of Edinburgh Volleyball Club.

As the No. 1 setter for the Scottish National Team, Watt was selected to the 24-man roster for the Great Britain Olympic Team for the 2012 London Olympics.

Prior to moving to the United States, Watt played professionally in France for three years with Amiens Metropole VBC (2010-11) and AS Cannes Volleyball Club (2011-13).

Watt graduated from Napier University in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 2009 with a bachelor's degree in Sport and Exercise Science with Coaching. He also earned his HND in Sports Coaching with Development of Sport from Edinburgh Telford College in 2008.

He and his wife, Tennessee head coach Eve Rackham Watt, have one son, Jude.