Richard Williams (basketball coach)
Richard Williams is an American basketball coach currently on the staff at the University of Southern Mississippi. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Mississippi State University from 1986 to 1998, compiling a record of 191–163. His 191 victories are the second most of any head coach in Mississippi State Bulldogs men's basketball program, history, bested only by his former assistant, Rick Stansbury. Williams's 1991 squad won the Southeastern Conference regular season championship and made the 1991 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, losing in the first round to Eastern Michigan. His 1995 squad made the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament, and his 1996 squad made the school's only Final Four appearance, losing to Syracuse, 77–69. He received two SEC Coach of the Year awards. Williams resigned as the head coach at Mississippi State two years removed from his Final Four appearance.
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Special Assistant to the Head Coach |
| Team | Southern Miss |
| Conference | C-USA |
| Biographical details | |
| Alma mater | Mississippi State |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1984–1986 | Mississippi State (assistant) |
| 1986–1998 | Mississippi State |
| 2001 | Memphis Houn'Dawgs |
| 2003 | Pearl HS |
| 2004 | Jackson Rage |
| 2008–2009 | UAB (DBO) |
| 2009 | Louisiana Tech (DBO) |
| 2010–2014 | Arkansas State (assistant) |
| 2020-Present | Southern Miss (assistant) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 191–163 (college) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| SEC regular season (1991) SEC Tournament (1996) | |
| Awards | |
| 2× SEC Coach of the Year (1991, 1995) | |
After leaving Mississippi State, Williams coached the Memphis Houn'Dawgs of the American Basketball Association (ABA), the Jackson Rage of the World Basketball Association (WBA), and at his alma mater, Pearl High School in Pearl, Mississippi. He served as the director of basketball administration at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 2008 and in 2009 he was named the director of basketball administration and program coordinator for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs basketball team on a volunteer basis. Williams was an assistant coach for Arkansas State under John Brady from 2010 to 2014. Williams served as the color commentator for the Mississippi State basketball team's radio broadcasts from the 2014–15 season through the 2019-2020 season.
Head coaching record
College
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi State Bulldogs (Southeastern Conference) (1986–1998) | |||||||||
| 1986–87 | Mississippi State | 7–21 | 3–15 | 10th | |||||
| 1987–88 | Mississippi State | 14–15 | 6–12 | 10th | |||||
| 1988–89 | Mississippi State | 13–15 | 7–11 | 8th | |||||
| 1989–90 | Mississippi State | 16–14 | 7–11 | T–8th | NIT Second Round | ||||
| 1990–91 | Mississippi State | 20–9 | 13–5 | T–2nd | NCAA Division I First Round | ||||
| 1991–92 | Mississippi State | 15–13 | 7–9 | 4th (West) | |||||
| 1992–93 | Mississippi State | 13–16 | 5–11 | 5th (West) | |||||
| 1993–94 | Mississippi State | 18–11 | 9–7 | 3rd (West) | NIT First Round | ||||
| 1994–95 | Mississippi State | 22–8 | 12–4 | T–1st (West) | NCAA Division I Sweet 16 | ||||
| 1995–96 | Mississippi State | 26–8 | 10–6 | T–1st (West) | NCAA Division I Final Four | ||||
| 1996–97 | Mississippi State | 12–18 | 6–10 | T–3rd (West) | |||||
| 1997–98 | Mississippi State | 15–15 | 4–12 | 5th (West) | |||||
| Mississippi State: | 191–163 | 89–113 | |||||||
| Total: | 191–163 | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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References