West Virginia University Athletics

Former Mountaineer and NCAA All-American Zaakira Muhammad is in her third year as the assistant head coach, as well as her fifth season as a member of the coaching staff at West Virginia University. A four-year letterwinner at WVU from 2015-18, she returned to Morgantown in June 2020 after serving as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan in 2019.
 
The Pennsauken, New Jersey, native assists the Mountaineers on the coaching of all four events, with her primary responsibilities including choreography for balance beam and floor exercise. Under her guidance, West Virginia’s floor lineup tallied 32 straight meets with an event score of 49.0 or higher from the conclusion of her first season in 2021 through the final meet of the 2023 campaign.
 
Muhammad’s coaching on floor helped the lineup reach its highest total since 2016 with a 49.575 in 2023. The floor squad was ranked inside the top 25 in the Road to Nationals rankings for 30 consecutive weeks beginning in 2021, with the lineup peaking at No. 4 at the beginning of the 2022 campaign. The ranking marked WVU’s highest Road to Nationals ranking on any event in program history.
 
In addition to these responsibilities, she also oversees the team’s multimedia and community service outreach efforts.
 
The Mountaineers hit several milestones during the 2024 campaign, with the biggest being the celebration of the program’s 50-year anniversary. The WVU gymnastics team’s varsity status dates back to 1974, and the squad celebrated the milestone throughout the 2024 season. Additionally, the program exceeded 800 victories all-time with a win over Kent State on Jan. 28, 2024.
 
In her first season under her new title as assistant head coach, Muhammad helped the Mountaineers post a 12-9 record in 2023, including a 1-2 mark in Big 12 Conference competition with their first regular-season Big 12 victory since 2017. WVU earned its 43rd NCAA Regional appearance with an automatic bye into the NCAA Pittsburgh Regional Second Round, bypassing the First Round, play-in meet for the first time since 2019. At the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship, WVU finished in third place for the second straight year.

West Virginia posted a season-high score of 197.325 on March 5 to mark the highest team total since 2004, reaching the 197.0 threshold for the first time since 2004. The Mountaineers also recorded event scores of 49.425 on vault and 49.475 on beam in that performance, which also were their highest totals since the 2004 campaign.
 
Muhammad continued to provide excellent leadership for WVU’s floor exercise lineup, as it extended its streak of scores of 49.0 or higher on floor to over 30 consecutive meets. The lineup remained ranked inside the top 25 on Road to Nationals throughout the year, peaking at No. 15. The Mountaineers reached a season-best 49.575 on floor on Feb. 19, their highest score since 2016, with all six gymnasts scoring a 9.9 or higher. West Virginia finished the year ranked No. 19 on vault and floor, as well as No. 30 overall, in the Road to Nationals rankings.
 
Under Muhammad’s guidance, West Virginia finished with a 13-5 overall mark in 2022. The record-breaking campaign consisted of a stretch of 11 straight wins, six team scores that rank inside the program’s top 50 all-time and a third-place finish at the 2022 Big 12 Championship, the squad’s highest finish at the conference meet since 2017.
 
Muhammad and the Mountaineers were recognized at the conference and regional levels for their accomplishments in 2022. The honors began with Kendra Combs and Abbie Pierson garnering Big 12 Gymnast of the Week accolades, before Combs was named to the All-Big 12 Team and Rachel Hornung earned a spot on the All-Big 12 Championship Team. At season’s end, Muhammad and associate head coach Travis Doak were named the Region 6 Co-Assistant Coaches of the Year by the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA).
 
When she joined WVU’s coaching staff, Muhammad assumed choreography responsibilities for WVU’s floor exercise lineup. In 2022, she coached the floor squad to its second consecutive season ranked inside the top 25 of the Road to Nationals rankings every week of the regular season. The Mountaineers debuted at No. 4 on Jan. 17, marking the team’s highest ranking since at least 1998. The last time the Mountaineers appeared inside the Road to Nationals top 10 was in 2001, when WVU ranked No. 8 nationally on floor. The squad recorded a 49.0 or higher at every meet during the season, including a season-best 49.525.

In her first season on the staff in 2021, Muhammad helped the Mountaineers to their 41st NCAA Regional Championships appearance in program history, as West Virginia hosted the regional championship at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown. WVU ended the year ranked No. 28 in the Road to Nationals Rankings with a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 391.419. The Mountaineers' floor exercise lineup was ranked inside the top 25 every week, as the squad posted a 49.0 or higher in all but two meets.
 
Eleven of the 14 Mountaineers who saw competitive time in 2021 reached the podium. WVU boasted 64 podium finishes on the year, while Kendra Combs led the team with 11 podium finishes and seven event wins. Academically, nine Mountaineers earned a spot on the 2021 Academic All-Big 12 Gymnastics Teams, including six first-team members. Kianna Yancey was the lone WVU gymnast to earn the recognition with a 4.0 grade-point average.
 
While at Eastern Michigan, Muhammad assisted in the team’s choreography for balance beam and floor exercise, as well as the Eagles’ recruiting efforts. She also coordinated all team activities.
 
EMU claimed three team victories in a season cut short due to COVID-19. Individually, Muhammad helped coach a pair of gymnasts to All-Mid-American Conference Second Team honors.
 
Muhammad began her coaching career at Temple as a graduate assistant who was responsible for coaching the Owls on vault. In her first season, she helped TU claim its first-ever Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship title in school history. She also assisted in coaching three individual gymnasts at the 2019 NCAA Athens Regional, including ECAC Rookie of the Year Ariana Castrence on vault. Temple ended the year ranked inside the top 50 of the Road to Nationals Rankings, its highest ranking in more than 20 years.
 
While at WVU, Muhammad competed in 51 career meets and totaled 1,552.8125 points for the Mountaineers. She also ranks No. 10 in program history with 16 career scores of 9.9 or better and No. 9 with six career vault scores of 9.9 or better. Muhammad finished her career with 75 podium finishes and 20 event wins.
 
An individual all-around qualifier at the 2017 NCAA National Championships, Muhammad tied for eighth place on floor and earned All-America Second Team accolades. She became the first WVU gymnast to secure All-America recognition at the National Championships since Janáe Cox in 2007. Prior to the NCAA Championships, Muhammad finished second on floor at the Big 12 Championship and earned a spot on the All-Big 12 Championship Team.
 
Additionally, she just missed individual qualifying for the 2018 NCAA National Championships on vault as a senior, finishing third at the NCAA University Park Regional Championships.
 
The two-time team captain received the Linda Burdette-Good Award for the Most Valuable Gymnast a trio of times (2016-18) and was twice named a Joseph Medrick Award honoree (2017-18) as the team’s highest all-around scorer of the season.
 
Muhammad shows career highs of 9.95 on floor, 9.925 on beam, 9.9 on vault and uneven bars and 39.575 in the all-around.
 
Academically, Muhammad was named an NACGC/W Scholastic All-American as a senior and was a three-time Academic All-Big 12 Second Team member (2016-18). She also landed on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll, as well as the Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll while at WVU.
 
Additionally, Muhammad gained experience mentoring young gymnasts as a coach and counselor for the West Virginia University gymnastics summer camp. She also was an assistant level 10 coach for TNT Elite Gymnastics.
 
Muhammad graduated from WVU with a bachelor’s degree in journalism in May 2018. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in higher education.