The Journey: Gabe Lazo returns to Florida, takes over at UCF

On3’s Talia Goodman is showcasing women’s college basketball coaches taking over at new schools. This is the third edition of the series – in which we’ll take a deeper look at some of the 60-plus coaches who took over new programs during a turbulent offseason. This time we learn more about Gabe Lazo, the new head coach at UCF.

Gabe Lazo bio

HOMETOWN: Miami, FL
EXPERIENCE: John A. Ferguson Senior HS (head coach), FIU (asst.), Stony Brook (asst.), George Washington (asst.), Mississippi State (asst.), Tennessee (asst.)
PLAYED: FIU, Barry

Why UCF?

For Lazo, UCF was the dream job.

“It’s an incredible city in Orlando,” he said. “It fits me. It’s a Hispanic-serving university and it’s a place that you know you can build. I have a lot of energy. At a place like UCF, if you can re-energize that program, it’s a program that can really move up and grow.”

His entire coaching life runs through Florida. It’s where he grew up, where he coached high school basketball and AAU. It’s where he always wanted to return.

The Big 12 was also a major draw, as was the administration and other coaches. 

“Scott Frost and Johnny Dawkins – those are all great people to have around you,” Lazo said. 

And the opportunity to build something from the ground up is exactly the kind of challenge he leans toward. 

“I love just thinking back to when I was a high school head coach – took over a program that was at the bottom in the state of Florida, and took her all the way to the top,” he said. “It’s all about building and creating something.”

Building the roster in a new era

Lazo arrived just days before the portal opened, meaning the to-do list was significant and the clock was ticking. His first priorities were to assemble a staff, connect with the current players and identify who fit the program he was trying to build.

UCF had finished near the bottom of the Big 12 in three-point shooting, and Lazo knew immediately that had to change. 

“Nowadays you gotta be able to shoot the ball,” he said. “I want to play much faster – being skilled and being able to shoot it at the guard spot and then post players that can run, that can defend and rebound.”

Retention came first. Keeping Mahogany Chandler-Roberts was huge, he said, and holding onto Jasmynne Gibson gave him another important piece. From there, finding a point guard became the top portal priority. The answer came in Caitlyn Jones, an incoming sophomore out of Wake Forest who had impressed in her first college season. 

“She had a great freshman year at Wake,” Lazo said.

Lazo’s coaching style and mindset

On the court, Lazo’s system will look different from what UCF fans have seen in recent years – more spacing, more shooting and more pace. His forwards will be expected to shoot the three and guards need to be skilled enough to operate in an up-tempo system.

Off the court, Lazo’s program will be built around what he calls the three E’s: energy, enthusiasm and effort. 

“We’re going to be a blue collar team,” he said. “We’re never going to get outplayed. That’s the goal.”

His core values go deeper than basketball. Gratitude is central to everything. It’s rooted, in part, in his family’s story. 

“My background, my heritage – a lot of people I feel don’t understand how good we have it,” he said. “For me, having family in Cuba who is starving and has no electricity, I’m super grateful just to be here, but obviously to have this opportunity to lead.”

Lazo is also careful about the word “recruiter”. He doesn’t love it. 

“I hate when I’m referred to as a recruiter, because I think recruiting is such a transactional term,” he said. “I’m all about building a genuine connection and hopefully being able to transform. And you know, there’s times that players are going to help transform me.”

He traces that mindset directly back to his playing days. 

“That’s why I played for Frank Martin and I played for Anthony Grant,” he said. “I became who I am because of them teaching us the game of life through the game of basketball.”

Most importantly, Lazo has no intention of becoming a different person now that he’s in the head coaching seat. 

“When your players feel that you’re like a normal human being and feel like you are humble, there’s a connection that you create,” he said. “I’m going to keep it to who I am.”

Something you may not know about Lazo

“People don’t know how big of a heart I have,” he said. 

Raised by a single mother, Lazo describes himself as humble and vulnerable in ways that might surprise people who see his confidence on the sideline first. 

“A lot of people who don’t know me, they see me and they’re like, ‘oh, he thinks he’s all that’ – and it’s not like that,” he said. “You’ve just got to get a chance to know me.”