Jason Harris returns for his ninth year as head coach at UMass Boston in 2024-25.
Just the second full-time coach in program history, Harris has quickly made his mark on the program. He has led the Beacons to winning seasons in four of his first five years, including a program-record four-straight from 2016-17 to 2019-20. During that run, Harris has led UMass Boston to marquee victories over nationally-ranked Tufts University and Division I College of Holy Cross.
During his first five seasons, the Beacons have qualified for the Little East Conference Tournament every year and advanced to the conference semifinals three times. The Beacons posted 16 wins and nine conference victories twice during that span (2017-18 and 2019-20). Both of those marks rank in the top-three for a single-season in program history.
Harris has had nine players named to the Little East Conference All-Conference Teams, including 2017-18 LEC Rookie of the Year Michael Boyd and 2019-20 LEC Defensive Player of the Year Charles Mitchell. The 2016-17 team tied the program record with five student-athletes named to the LEC All-Conference teams.
Under his guidance, UMass Boston men’s basketball picked up two of their biggest wins in program history. On December 6, 2016, the Beacons earned their first-ever win over a top-five team, when they downed #5 Tufts University 76-74 on the road. Just over two years later, UMass Boston stunned Division 1 College of Holy Cross 69-66 in overtime.
He has been active within the UMass Boston Athletics community in leading the fight for social justice, diversity and inclusion. In the summer of 2021, Harris founded the Student-Athletes of Color organization to give student-athletes of all backgrounds an inclusive space to talk about their experiences and learn from past student-athletes. He also created the Black Coaches Classic ahead of the 2021-22 season. The first-ever Black Coaches Classic included four of the seven Division III programs in Massachusetts that are led by Black coaches and featured two all Black officiating crews. The goal of the invitational is to expand to more teams and potentially include women’s programs and programs for all levels going forward. Harris traveled to Africa in 2016 and 2019 to hold basketball camps in Benin, as part of the YES (Youth Education and Sports) Africa project.
Harris served as the top assistant for Long Island University head coach Jack Perri from 2010-15. During his time with the Blackbirds, Harris coached nine All-Northeast Conference selections, and two players who won major conference awards. From 2010-2013, the Blackbirds put together an unprecedented run as they won three-straight conference titles and posted a record of 72-29 overall. During their remarkable stretch the Blackbirds record an NEC record of 44-10.
As one of the team’s top recruiters, Harris traveled throughout New England, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland.
No stranger to the New England area, Harris is very familiar with Division III basketball, and especially the Little East Conference, having played his college basketball at Rhode Island College. A three-time captain for the Anchormen, Harris led RIC to the program’s first regular season championship in 2005.
Following his graduation from Rhode Island College, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in justice studies, Harris stayed in the conference, and served as the assistant coach at Plymouth State University. He would then take the reins and served as the interim head coach for the Panthers for the 2007-08 season.
A native of Bedford, Mass., Harris also holds a master’s degree in social science, which he earned at Long Island University in 2010.
