As his brother takes over college football, Josiah LeGree looks to define his own legacy at UTSA

Josiah LeGree decided in middle school that football wasn’t his sport. His brother, Oregon State phenom Jesse LeGree, decided it was his. 

Both decisions are paying off. Jesse LeGree leads the nation in receiving yards for the Beavers with 1,040 through seven games, and Josiah LeGree is preparing to run point for a UTSA men’s basketball squad with 14 newcomers.

In San Antonio, Josiah LeGree is ready to make his own name, but that doesn’t mean he views his brother’s success as competition. Instead, he sees it as something to build on. 

“I just want to take my opportunity and run with it,” LeGree said. “He created the path. I’m going to put my feet on it, and keep walking with him. If my path goes the opposite way, I hope his path continues.” 

Growing up, all LeGree knew was basketball. His father, Jeffery, was a high school basketball star in Oakland, California, before enlisting in the Army. After serving for eight years, including two tours in Iraq, Jeffery returned to play collegiate basketball at Shaw University at 28 years old.  

“I got into basketball because of my father,” LeGree said. “I was traveling everywhere with him because he was in the Army, spinning that stroller at his practices, at his games. I was growing up in the gym with him during his workouts. Basketball came naturally to me.

“The Army teaches you discipline, consistency and going to get it every day. My father showed me that through basketball, that’s why every day I walk out here with discipline, consistency and just the joy of having to be here.” 

A Baltimore native, LeGree played at Indiana State in 2024 and Morehead State in 2025, where he was recruited by current UTSA assistant Jordan Brooks. 

“I have a hard time trusting people,” Josiah said. “Brooks is one of those people I trust.” 

Brooks and LeGree’s relationship dates back to when LeGree was in high school. But Brooks left Morehead State for UTSA just before the 2025 season, so the Roadrunners’ upcoming campaign will be his first time actually coaching LeGree. 

“I’ve known Josiah since he was in the 10th or 11th grade,” Brooks said. “I recruited him out of high school. I knew he was going to be a good player with his skill set — his ability to pass, score and shoot. 

“So I recruited him out of high school and he ended up classing up. So Josiah is actually supposed to be a sophomore this year. But he ended up going to school early. I was at Morehead State at the time and I missed out on him early, but I had a really good relationship with him, his dad and his family.

“I ended up getting him after his freshman year while I was at Morehead State. [But] I never really had a chance to coach him.” 

LeGree’s commitment to UTSA extends beyond his connection with Brooks, though. His next destination had to feel right. LeGree says “the energy” around the Roadrunners drew him to San Antonio.

“Energy is a big thing to me,” LeGree said. “The energy with the coaching staff, the energy with the players, it was just there. It was where I wanted to be. San Antonio is a great environment too. So, for a man to be happy, his environment has to be happy. He has to keep that peace. I’m very peaceful out here in San Antonio.” 

UTSA head coach Austin Claunch, now in his third year helming the men’s basketball program, played a pivotal role in making the program’s energy match what LeGree was looking for. 

“He’s like a big cousin to me,” LeGree said of Claunch. “He knows when to flip that mode from being a coach to being the guy I need. Me and him are very close, and getting closer as the days come. 

“He has a unique coaching style. Not a lot of coaches let you be you. They try to make you robots. Coach Claunch told me to come here and be me. We’ve had two scrimmages here so far, and he’s stood on what he said.”

“He’s a man of his word. And as a man, that’s all I ask for in a coach.” 

Claunch’s approach with LeGree is already paying off. LeGree reportedly scored 14 points in a closed-door scrimmage victory against New Mexico State, 12 of which came from beyond the arc. 

Scrimmage wins aren’t anything to hang your hat on, but it’s a step in the right direction for a program that won four games in 2025 — originally five before UTSA decided to no longer recognize its win over the College of Biblical Studies due to an “eligibility issue.”

It’s no secret the Roadrunners have struggled to find sustained success for a while now. UTSA has just three winning seasons in the past 10 years, zero since 2020. LeGree has been through a turnaround before, though. 

In 2023, LeGree was pivotal in Parkville High School’s first-ever Class 4A state title run, scoring 22 points in the title game against Meade High School. The next year, he transferred to St. Frances, where he won the Baltimore Catholic League Tournament Championship and was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. 

During his lone season at Morehead in 2025, the Eagles won a share of the Ohio Valley Conference regular season title.

“Wherever I go, I’m going to contribute to winning,” LeGree said. 

With his track record, it’s no surprise LeGree’s goals for this year are lofty. 

“I want to show the world who I am,” he said. “I’ve had spurts of opportunities from the previous colleges, but I feel like this year, y’all really going to know who I am.

“That could be leading the country in assists, or leading the country in scoring. It could be being the best role model on the bench for other players, whatever role coach gives me. I’m going to be the best at it.” 

LeGree added one more goal for the team: 

“Go dancing.” 

UTSA men’s basketball hasn’t qualified for March Madness since 2011. But LeGree isn’t deterred, and his hyper-competitive attitude matches what Brooks saw when evaluating LeGree. 

“He’s an ultimate competitor,” Brooks said. “He’s a gym rat. He loves the game. He lives in the gym. He’s in the gym at 6:30 in the morning and he’s here late at night. He’s always watching film, watching himself, whether it’s with me, coach Claunch or any of the coaches. But not just with us, when he’s at home or at his apartment as well.

“He does all the things that you want in a guard to develop and get better. I think that’s kind of where he’s been having his success because of how much he loves the game and how dedicated he is to it.” 

Football season has introduced fans to his brother, but during basketball season, it’s Josiah’s turn.

But before he hits the hardwood, we asked Josiah how he would describe himself as a person:

“I love the kids. I love the environment and I feel like I’m a great person,” he said. “I’m very misunderstood, and hopefully I get the chance to show you who I really am.”