#TashaTough has spread across the internet, with athletic departments nationwide sending their love and support to the Georgetown Women’s Basketball team following the death of their 41-year-old head coach, Tasha Butts, who passed after a two-year battle with breast cancer.
In a press release, Georgia Tech, where Tasha worked before her head coach position at Georgetown in April 2023, shared the news of its former coach’s passing Oct. 23.
“The news of Tasha’s passing is incredibly sad,” Head Coach Nell Fortner said. “Tasha was so instrumental to the success of this program. What she did as a member of this coaching staff cannot be overvalued. She was tough – tough on her kids, tough in her expectations, but yet she was soft underneath when players needed her to be there for them, and she was always there for them. We are incredibly sad this day has come. She battled from the day of her diagnosis. We are proud of her fight to the end. We will forever love Tasha. She will forever be missed.”
The 41-year-old was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer in 2021, leading to the Tasha Tough campaign, where Georgia Tech athletes worked to raise money to provide better cancer healthcare for underserved women. The campaign aims to raise $100,000 toward the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
Tasha joined Georgia Tech as an assistant head coach in April 2019 and got promoted to associate head coach in April 2021, guiding the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances, two 20-plus win campaigns and the No. 3 position in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2021.
Tasha’s impeccable coaching capabilities landed her on the 2023 ABIS Women’s Basketball Black College Coaches Watch List and made her the recipient of the 2023 Giant Steps Award.
Prior to Georgia Tech, Tasha coached the LSU women’s basketball team for eight years, where the team gained four 20-win seasons and six NCAA Tournament appearances.
In response to the news of the 41-year-old’s death, LSU’s head coach Kim Mulkey and associate head coach Bob Starkey, a Kay Yow Cancer Fund board member, released a statement about her.
“Tasha was a great player and went on to have a successful career as a coach, too,” Mulkey said. “More importantly, she had an impact on so many lives throughout her lifetime. We are sad to lose her at such a young age.”
“We are deeply saddened to hear of Tasha’s passing,” Starkey said. “The courage she displayed as she battled cancer should set an example for us all, and her spirit should inspire us all to continue in her honor to work towards a cure for breast cancer.”
As an assistant coach for the UCLA Bruins (2008-2011), Tasha helped drive the women’s Bruins to the NCAA Tournament twice and their 2010 and 2011 second-place wins in the Pac-10 Conference.
Tasha took her talents to Georgetown University as the head women’s basketball coach in April. Georgetown’s women’s basketball team’s Instagram page posted a message regarding the beloved coach’s death.
