Kermit Davis to remain at Ole Miss after "productive discussions" with Keith Carter
Kermit Davis will continue to be the head coach of the Ole Miss men’s basketball program for at least the upcoming 2022-23.
Following what athletics director Keith Carter called “productive discussions,” both he and Davis issued a joint statement announcing Davis will stay on with the Rebels and both are focused on the future.
The Rebels are coming off one of their worst SEC seasons in three decades, finishing 4-14 in conference play and losing to Missouri in the opening round of the SEC Tournament last week in Tampa.
For the third time in 16 years the Rebels finished with a losing season and an overall record of 13-19 in Davis’ fourth season with the Rebels. Two of those losing seasons have come during Davis’ tenure.
“Coach Davis and I have had productive discussions this week, and while our team faced some unforeseen circumstances, we are both disappointed by this season’s results,” Carter said. “Kermit has enjoyed tremendous success throughout his career and understands what it takes to win at a high level. He has presented to me a plan to regain the momentum that took our program to the NCAA Tournament just a few years ago. Additionally, we are committed to providing him support and resources in order to make the changes necessary to compete for championships. We believe in Kermit’s vision for Ole Miss Basketball and look forward to seeing it translate to NCAA Tournament success.”
The Rebels were also plagued with injuries throughout the season. Robert Allen and Daeshun Ruffin each suffered season-ending ACL injuries while Jarkel Joiner sustained a back injury that required surgery and kept him out for close to a month during the middle of the season.
Davis has an overall record of 64-61 as head coach of the Rebels and a 30-42 SEC record.
The Rebels went to the NCAA Tournament in Davis’ first season but were knocked out by Oklahoma in the opening round. The only other postseason appearance by the Rebels in the last four seasons was least season when the received a NIT bid after missing out on the NCAA Tournament. They were knocked out by Louisiana Tech in the opening round.
“Our players and staff are looking straight ahead with great enthusiasm to get Ole Miss Basketball back to NCAA Tournaments and our third postseason in five years,” Davis said. “This past season was one of the most uniquely challenging years pertaining to injuries I have ever endured as a head coach. We have a great nucleus coming back with four of our top five scorers returning and getting Daeshun, Robert and Jarkel 100 percent healthy for the 2022-23 season. We will have a top-25 recruiting class with four high school players that will immediately impact our program, and we will attack the portal as aggressively as any team in America. I believe in our process but am not satisfied with our progress. And I assure you we will not be satisfied until we achieve what we have set out to do: win NCAA Tournament games.
“As a proud Mississippi native, I firmly believe there is no greater honor than wearing a jersey with Ole Miss on the front, and every day, I am so proud to coach these players.”
Ahead of this last season, Davis received a new four-year contract — the maximum allowable for a public employee in Mississippi. There was no news of a rollover to extend it back to four years in the announcement.
Davis has also taken Ole Miss to new heights in recruiting, signing the two highest ranked recruits in program history. Matthew Murrell broke the record as part of the 2020 class, and Ruffin, the 2021 Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year, stayed in his home state and became a Rebel. Ruffin also was the first McDonald’s All-American to sign with the Rebels out of high school. Both cracked the top 40 nationally when they signed to continue their careers at Ole Miss.
