Justin Price, the 2025 Big Ten Coach of the Year and two-time CRCA Regional Coach of the Year, begins his ninth season as the head coach of the Rutgers women’s rowing program, with the Scarlet Knights having reached new historic highs during his tenure.
Since arriving “On The Banks” in 2018, Price has continued to build upon one of the most successful turnaround stories in NCAA rowing, transforming an 18-year drought of NCAA Championships into six consecutive appearances, including RU’s most recent appearance, an eighth-place finish in 2025.
Price and his CRCA Regional Staff of the Year saw the Scarlet Knights produce perhaps the most successful season to date last year as the program celebrated its 50th varsity season. Not only did Rutgers’ eighth-place NCAA performance see the Varsity 4 finish fifth, the Varsity 8 take eighth and the 2nd Varsity 8 claim 13th, the Scarlet Knights had their best-ever Big Ten showing as conference runner-up while winning a program-record six medals. By the 2025 season’s end, four Scarlet Knights were named CRCA All-Americans and five earned All-Big Ten honors and two landed Big Ten All-Freshman accolades, including Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Beatrice Colclough.
The excitement of the 2025 season continued well beyond NCAAs with Rutgers winning the Island Challenge Cup in their first-ever appearance at the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta and four Scarlet Knights competing for their home countries at the U23 World Championships. On the world stage, Lily Wood claimed gold for Great Britain’s women’s eight and Victoria Grieder served as coxswain of Canada’s bronze-medaling women’s eight.
Altogether, the Justin Price era of Rutgers women’s rowing has seen 14 different athletes bestowed a total of 21 CRCA All-America honors. Additionally, nine of Price's student-athletes have competed in the U23 World Championships for a total of 10 medals from six different countries captured on the international stage. The Scarlet Knights have been both represented and medaled at every U23 World Championships since 2018.
At the Big Ten level, Price took a Rutgers program that finished last at the championships for three consecutive seasons to a yearly contender for the Big Ten title. Price has led the Scarlet Knights to six best team finishes at the Big Ten Championships – second in 2025, third in 2021, 2022 and 2024, fourth in 2019 and seventh in 2018. The 2025 season saw RU enjoy its most successful Big Ten Championships since joining the conference in 2014 with program records for place (second), points (239), medals (six) and all-conference selections (five).
The tradition of excellence of Rutgers rowing in the Big Ten began as the Scarlet Knights claimed their first Big Ten medals in 2019, capturing silver and bronze in two events. During the 2018 season, Price guided the program to its first-ever Big Ten Boat of the Week honors, and since then, has totaled 10 weekly accolades with a trio of honors in 2019 and a pair in 2021 and 2024.
Last season’s success came on the heels of a 2024 season that saw Rutgers finish 14th in the country at the NCAA Championships, qualifying for the national regatta for the fifth consecutive season. The Scarlet Knights' performance was highlighted by a 10th-place finish by the Varsity 4 boat, followed by 14th-place for the 2nd Varsity 8 and 15th for the Varsity 8 as RU combined for 55 points during championship weekend, one more point and one more place ahead of their 2023 team finish. The season wrapped up with Rutgers honored with a pair of All-America awards from the CRCA.
Price’s Rutgers squad finished third at the 2024 Big Ten Championships, tying for its then-highest finish at the conference regatta as the Scarlet Knights brought home three medals, including a Big Ten gold for a third consecutive year after the 3rd Varsity 4 won its race for the second straight year. The Varsity 4 raced to silver, while the 2nd Varsity 8 claimed bronze. Two Varsity 8 members, who saw their boat finish less than a second away from a Big Ten Championships medal, were named All-Big Ten.
The Scarlet Knights also claimed two Big Ten Boat of the Week honors in 2024 - the 3rd Varisty 4 on May 7 after a gold at the Eastern Sprints and the 2nd Varsity 4 after wins over No. 8 Penn and No. 11 Ohio State at the Big Ten/Ivy Dust Up in March.
More of the current foundation Price has built came during the 2023 season as RU finished the season 15th in the country with all three boats racing to second-place finishes in the C finals (14th overall) at the NCAA Championships. The Scarlet Knights entered the national championships with just nine returners from the previous season's NCAA boats, with the strong depth of newcomers keeping the trend of Rutgers outracing its seeding heading into the NCAA Championships. All three 14th-place boats finished ahead of their seed (V8 - 17th, 2V8 - 15th, V4 - 16th).
Rutgers placed fourth at the 2023 Big Ten Championship, winning four medals at the conference regatta and claiming Big Ten gold for a second-straight year after the 3rd Varsity 4 won its championship race. The Varsity 8 placed fourth, while the 2nd Varsity 8 and Varsity 4 raced to bronze medals, matching their then-best results at the Big Ten Championships. Two Varsity 8 boat members were named All-Big Ten, with Hannah Heideveld taking First Team honors for a second consecutive season.
In Price’s fifth season in 2022, Rutgers placed 13th in the nation at the NCAA Championships, compiling 64 team points at the national regatta behind a ninth-place finish from the Varsity 4 boat and 13th-place results from the Varsity 8 and 2nd Varsity 8. All three of Rutgers' NCAA boats outperformed their seeding heading into the national regatta, which had the Varsity 8 at 16th, and the 2nd Varsity 8 and Varsity 4 at 15th.
Price garnered his first regional coaching honors with the 2021 Scarlet Knights after the program posted a seventh-place finish at the national regatta, then the highest finish in school history, after peaking at No. 4 in the CRCA Pocock national poll during the campaign. Hannah Heideveld was also recognized as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Following the landmark 2021 season, Price was named the CRCA Regional Coach of the Year, while his assistants and supporting cast earned CRCA Regional Staff of the Year honors.
Hopes were high for Price’s Scarlet Knights entering the 2020 season as the team earned its first preseason ranking at No. 12 before the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the NCAA season in March.
In only his second season at Rutgers, Price guided the Scarlet Knights to the NCAA Championships, snapping an 18-year drought and beginning the string of six consecutive appearances that continues today. RU finished 11th at the 2019 NCAA Championships, placing ahead of five other ranked squads and three Big Ten schools. Price was honored with the 2019 Joy of Sculling University Coach of the Year award following the 2018-2019 season.
In his first season at RU in 2018, Price set the tone immediately, as after the first week of competition, the Scarlet Knights earned their first-ever Big Ten Boat of the Week honors since joining the conference, following a sweep of Columbia. The Scarlet Knights picked up another sweep at the Cherry Hill Invitational, winning every event in the 11-team field by open water. At the Eastern Sprints, Rutgers finished third in overall team scoring and posted six top-three finishes, including a pair of wins in the 2nd Varsity 4 and 4th Varsity 8. The 2018 season was capped off at the Big Ten Championships, where Rutgers posted the then-program’s best showing across the board and in the team standings. Rutgers finished fifth in the 2nd Varsity 4 and sixth in both the Novice 8 and Varsity 8. Additionally, Sarah Johanek was named First Team All-Big Ten for the second-straight year and freshman Ella Toa was selected Second Team All-Big Ten. Price also mentored Johanek in her quest to represent Team USA on the international stage as she qualified for the US U23 team and captured the gold medal in the coxed four at the U23 World Championships.
Prior to arriving at Rutgers, Price served as the director of rowing and women’s head coach at Loyola Marymount in 2016-17. He helped guide the Lions to a third-place finish at the West Coast Conference Championships in a seven-team field. LMU also earned a pair of selections to the WCC All-Conference teams.
During his time at UCLA, Price helped the Bruins to four NCAA Championship appearances, including the program's first-ever team bid in 2010 and a program-best eighth-place team finish in 2012 and 12th-place finish in 2014.
The former UCLA student-athlete coordinated all aspects of the Bruins' recruiting efforts. While serving as UCLA's recruiting coordinator, Price helped secure top recruiting classes, featuring elite American and international athletes who had competed at the Junior and U23 National Team levels before arriving at UCLA.
Price spent the summer of 2013 representing the United States as the coach of the U23 men's Coxed 4 that finished eighth at the U23 World Championships, while also serving as the men's U23 head coach at the Pennsylvania Athletic Club.
Tied with elite athletes throughout his coaching career, Price coached the women's lightweight double sculls that won a bronze medal at the 2015 Pan American Games and also recruited and trained three-time US National Team member Greg Flood while serving as a freshman/novice coach at the University of Notre Dame. Price helped guide Flood to consecutive Crash-B World Indoor Rowing Championships in the U23 Collegiate Lightweight category in 2010 and 2011.
During the 2007-08 season at Notre Dame - his first full year with the program - Price coached two national championship novice crews as his student-athletes won both the Novice 8 and Novice Lightweight 4 at the American Collegiate Rowing Association's (ACRA) National Championship Regatta, contributing to Notre Dame's third-place finish overall in 2008.
Before embarking on his coaching career, Price rowed four years for the UCLA men's team and graduated in 2006 with a degree in political science and a minor in music history. In 2006, Price earned a bronze medal rowing in the men's Varsity 4 at the Pac-10 Championships. He received the Coach's Award for his performance and leadership in 2004-05. In addition, Price was a three-time Pac-10 All-Academic Team selection--first team (2005, 2006) and honorable mention (2004).
While working as an assistant coach at the University of Notre Dame, Price earned his law degree (J.D.) in 2009 and is a member of the California State Bar.
