After the passage of Title IX in 1972, Alexis Jarrett helped usher in a new era for Mizzou Athletics — launching the university’s first eight varsity women’s sports programs and laying the foundation for generations of student-athletes to thrive. As Mizzou’s first coach for women’s basketball, track and field, and softball, she brought energy, vision and determination to help turn the promise of Title IX into meaningful progress on the playing field.
Jarrett came to Mizzou in 1974 and pioneered women’s athletics at the university. At the age of 26, along with the head coach responsibilities, she served as the university’s first assistant athletics director and sports information director for women’s sports. She was part of a team that built programs from the ground up by recruiting athletes, securing practice space, raising funds, and forging campus partnerships, including relationships with Mizzou legends Norm Stewart and Don Faurot, as well as continuing her friendship with Dan Devine, a fellow Minnesota-Duluth alumnus.
She spent one year as the women’s head basketball coach during the 1974-75 season. She led the Tigers to a 9-8 winning record. Additionally, she produced a winning record with the softball team. Jarrett wound up coaching basketball for one year, softball for two years and track for three years. In 1977, she wanted to be closer to her ailing mother, so she left Missouri for Indiana, where she ultimately became an insurance agent.
Her trailblazing leadership opened doors for women in sports and education not only in Missouri, but also in Indiana, where she continues to support women’s sports at the high school and collegiate levels.
Jarrett has remained a passionate supporter of Mizzou Athletics for more than five decades — mentoring former athletes, celebrating their milestones and cheering for her Tigers nationwide. In recent years, she was honored as a Women’s Athletics Trailblazer at the 2022 Mizzou Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame ceremony and returned to campus in 2025 for the inaugural Alexis Jarrett Invitational and 50th anniversary celebrations for Mizzou women’s basketball and softball, where she threw out the first pitch before a record-breaking crowd.