‘Wow, what a blessing.’ Former Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie back in Division I.
Billy Gillispie is returning to the Division I ranks.
Tarleton State announced that it agreed to terms on a four-year contract with the former University of Kentucky basketball coach on Monday night.
Terms of the contract are pending approval by The Texas A&M System Board of Regents. A virtual press conference to formally introduce Gillispie is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday on TarletonSports.com.
“Wow, what a blessing,” Gillispie said in a news release. “I’ve always believed I have been the luckiest man alive and today continues to illustrate that thought.”
Gillispie, 60, heads to Tarleton State after spending the last five years in the junior-college ranks at Ranger College. He last coached D-I at Texas Tech in 2011-12.
Tarleton State is set to join the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) on July 1, although it will not be eligible for Division I postseason tournaments until the 2024-25 season.
Still, Gillispie told the Star-Telegram over the weekend that he had a great deal of interest in the job. Gillispie grew up in Graford, about 60 miles north of Tarleton’s campus in Stephenville.
He’s familiar with Tarleton’s history as a successful Division II program, and expressed interest in helping it make the transition to D-I.
“I would enjoy another challenge,” Gillispie said. “I’ve got a great job here at Ranger, but every coach wants to win the national championship. The national championship is Division I.”
Gillispie has plenty of experience recruiting the state with stops at UTEP (2002-04), Texas A&M (2004-07), Texas Tech (2011-12) and Ranger (2015-present).
Gillispie was once regarded as one of the top coaches in college basketball.
At Texas A&M, he closed out his three-year tenure by leading the Aggies to the Sweet 16 in 2007. He then bolted for Kentucky, but that lasted only two seasons with a well-publicized fallout.
After stepping away from the game for two seasons, Gillispie re-emerged as Texas Tech’s coach for the 2011-12 season. But he went 8-23 in his only season in Lubbock and was met with allegations of player mistreatment. He eventually resigned, citing health concerns.
Gillispie had a three-year break before taking the job at Ranger.
“I thought I was done coaching before I came out to Ranger,” Gillispie said. “And I’ve had the time of my life coaching.”
The journey now continues in Stephenville.
Gillispie will take over for former head coach Chris Reisman, who became the assistant athletic director for student-athlete development and strategic initiatives at Tarleton.
This story was originally published March 30, 2020 at 9:49 PM with the headline "‘Wow, what a blessing.’ Former Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie back in Division I.."
