College basketball has always thrived on energy and how coaches build a strong connection with their fanbase. Chris Beard understood this dynamic better than most. In just two seasons at Ole Miss, he turned a once-overlooked basketball program into a competitive force in the SEC.
Chris Beard’s Immediate Impact on Ole Miss Basketball
On an October school night, Beard walked past the six towering white columns of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house to deliver a message. About 125—possibly 150—fraternity members crammed into the house, eager to hear what the head coach had to say.
“Everybody was really excited,” said Cale Spies, the chapter president. “I think a lot of people had a lot of hope for the season.”
The reaction to Beard’s speech was immediate and powerful, with the fraternity members giving him at least four standing ovations.
Beard’s commitment to engaging students extended beyond one fraternity house. He visited multiple Greek organizations and even created a group chat with chapter presidents to maintain a direct line of communication.
His outreach paid off—students responded by packing into the Sandy and John Black Pavilion, sometimes waiting in line for hours to secure a seat in the student section.
Their loyalty was rewarded with an incredible season, as Ole Miss finished 22-11, took down two AP top-five teams for the first time in school history, and returned to the NCAA tournament for the first time in six years.
His immediate success wasn’t surprising to the decision-makers at Ole Miss. Everywhere Beard had coached—whether at Little Rock, Texas Tech, Texas, or now Ole Miss—he had won. What made this situation unique was that he was doing it at a school where basketball had historically been an afterthought.
After being dismissed from Texas following a domestic assault arrest—though the charges were later dropped—Beard found himself in a place that offered him a second chance. And he made the most of it.
A Perfect Match for Ole Miss Basketball
The SEC is a conference dominated by football, and Ole Miss is no exception. Yet Beard saw the potential to turn the school into a legitimate basketball contender. The city of Oxford, with a population of just 27,000, provided the perfect setting for Beard to rebuild his career without overwhelming national scrutiny.
“I know there were overall mixed opinions about him being hired,” said a sorority member waiting in line to get into a game earlier in the season.
“But since then, I’ve been really happy with how our team has performed, and I think that’s been really good for our school morale and morale specifically about the basketball team.”
Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter recognized the opportunity in front of him. He knew that hiring Beard came with risks, but he also understood that bringing in a coach of his caliber was a rare opportunity.
“Being very candid, the situation that unfolded there [in Texas] certainly allowed us to get our name in. And a coach at that level—I mean, he’s a top-10 coach in the country, there’s no doubt about that. Would Ole Miss be able to get a guy like that in a normal situation? I don’t know. But things work out for a reason, and I think it’s worked out really well.”
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Last year, Arkansas pursued Beard, but Carter made it clear that he wasn’t going to lose his coach after just one season. Ole Miss responded by securing Beard with a new contract in March 2024, exactly one year after hiring him. For now, the program is thriving under his leadership.
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