STARKVILLE — Two former Mississippi State University men’s basketball players are the primary reason behind the momentum behind Kenny Payne’s candidacy for the school’s opening for a head coach.
Multiple sources have confirmed to The Dispatch that former MSU players David Rula and Erick Dampier began conversations with Payne. Rula and Dampier are two of many MSU donors pushing for the top assistant at the University of Kentucky to get the job and to replace Rick Stansbury, who retired after 14 years as head coach of the program.
The Dispatch learned Rula, Dampier, Payne, and William Wesley, a consultant for Creative Artists Agency, met last week in Atlanta to discuss Payne’s interest in the MSU position.
According to unnamed sources, Yahoo! Sports reported Friday that MSU Director of Athletics Scott Stricklin met with Payne at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New Orleans.
Wesley, a major power broker in basketball, helped get Payne into coaching as an assistant at the University of Oregon. Two years ago, Payne moved to Kentucky’s staff to coach under John Calipari, who is a close friend of Wesley’s. Wesley’s employer, Creative Arts Alliance, is an agency that represents coaches and professional players, and allows him to have ties to high school to NBA players.
Stricklin didn’t immediately return a message from The Dispatch on Saturday asking for a comment.
Kentucky will play Kansas for the national championship Monday evening. The Wildcats, the No. 1 seed, defeated the University of Louisville 69-61 in the national semifinals Saturday.
Rula and Dampier, who played on MSU’s Final Four team in 1996, were major donors to the $11 million Mize Pavilion practice facility. They have the practice floors named after them.
Dampier, a 16-year veteran of the NBA, is playing for the Atlanta Hawks this season. He was acknowledged at center court of Humphrey Coliseum as part of MSU’s 100 years of basketball season-long promotion.
Rula was a scholarship guard on the team coached by Richard Williams that went to the Final Four. He is a businessman who spent 11 years as a Suncoast Infrastructure in Jackson, which is the premier provider of no-dig sewer rehabilitation services in the Southeast.
The MSU coaching search process has reached 16 days after several names have reportedly turned down or have taken their name out of the running for the job.
Murray State University coach Steve Prohm and Valparaiso University coach Bryce Drew received contract extensions to stay at their schools after speaking with MSU officials about the position.
CBSsports.com reported Thursday that Vanderbilt assistant Dan Muller is the latest candidate for the opening.
Earlier this week, Stricklin released a public statement encouraging fans to have patience with the search process. The 63-word statement, which was first introduced on his Twitter page, represented the first public comments from the school’s highest athletics officer since he spoke after Stansbury’s retirement news conference.
“Like Bulldog fans everywhere, I eagerly anticipate the hiring of Mississippi State’s next men’s basketball coach,” Stricklin’s statement read. “However, from the beginning of this process, no deadline has been imposed on the search. It’s important we hire the right candidate to lead our program, a person of integrity who will instill discipline, character and accountability into the men’s basketball program at Mississippi State. Thank you for your patience. Hail State!”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 33 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
