OFFICIAL: Southern Arkansas names Rutledge Head Basketball Coach – HoopDirt

Following-up on something that I mentioned earlier today (D2 DIRT) – Southern Arkansas has named Angelo State assistant Mark Rutledge as their new head basketball coach. Here’s the official release:

Southern Arkansas University’s Director of Athletics Steve Browning has announced that Mark Rutledge has been named the newest Mulerider Men’s Head Basketball Coach; effective immediately. The official announcement was made at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday August 7.
 
“We are extremely excited to have Mark back in our program and this time as the leader,” Directors of Athletics Steve Browning remarked. Our tradition of transformational leaders within our men’s basketball program is strong and Mark will just continue to build upon that.  Mark, his wife Monica, and his children Elijah and Saniyah will be great assets to not only our Mulerider family, but the Magnolia community as well.  Our team is strong, our coaching staff is strong and the future is bright!”
 
Rutledge makes his return to Magnolia after having been the Angelo State Men’s Basketball Associate Head Coach the past year and on staff for the Rams the last two seasons. The native of Tulsa, Oklahoma will be the eleventh Mulerider Men’s Basketball head coach since 1950 while also becoming the seventh leader in the program’s near 30-year association with the NCAA.
 
“I am honored to accept the position of head coach at Southern Arkansas University,” declares Rutledge. “Reuniting with the Mulerider family is a meaningful full-circle moment for me, as SAU has always held a special place in my heart for launching my coaching career. My family and I are excited to return to the Magnolia community.
I want to express my sincere gratitude to President Dr. Bruno Hicks and Athletic Director Steve Browning for this opportunity. We are committed to upholding and advancing the winning tradition at SAU.”
 
While at his post at Angelo State, Rutledge aided the Rams in earning 45 wins with just 18 losses. The Sooner State native has been a huge aid for the Rams in Lone Star Conference and national play as the group has gone 33-11 against LSC competition and has been selected to the NCAA DII South Central Tournament each of the two years with Rutledge.
 
During his time with the Rams, Rutledge helped in the production of seven All-LSC honorees as well as an LSC Defensive (2022-23) and Newcomer (2023-24) of the Year. Rutledge was a part of a coaching staff at ASU that accomplished a lot of firsts in his second-year in San Angelo, Texas. While at Angelo State, Rutledge and the Rams made back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances, defeated two ranked teams in the same season (first time since 2014-15 | #15 Fort Lewis & #6 West Liberty), and ranked as high as #10 in NCAA DII (highest ranking since Jan. 3^rd, 2017).
 
The Rams during Rutledge’s year as Associate Head Coach sat amongst the top four of many statistical categories in the Lone Star. Those being assists per game (14.4 | 4^th LSC), blocks per game (3.2 | 4^th LSC), fastbreak points per game (12.8 | 4^th LSC), field goal percentage defense (43.4% | 4^th LSC), three-point percentage (38.7% | 3^rd LSC | 15^th nationally), and three pointers per game (9.1 | 3^rd LSC).
 
The Tulsa native during his first season with Angelo State assisted in coaching a Rams squad that ranked first in the LSC for defensive field goal percentage (42.2%) and rebound margin (4.6). That was not all though as the club ranked within the top three of the league for four other categories such as rebounds per game (35.39 | 3^rd LSC), scoring defense (65.3/gm | 2^nd LSC | 21^st nationally), scoring margin (7.1 | 2^nd LSC), and steals per game (8.2 | 2^nd LSC).
 
“I also want to thank everyone at Angelo State University, especially Coach Vinay Patel, for their warm welcome and support over the past two years,” Rutledge noted. “This opportunity would not have been possible without them. I look forward to rejoining the GAC conference and getting to work! Let’s Ride!”
 
Rutledge presents no shortage of experience at the DII level, especially in the Great American Conference. Just prior to his time at ASU, the Tulsa descendant was on the coaching staff for four years at Henderson State, in which he served his last two campaigns in Arkadelphia, Arkansas as the Reddies’ Associate Head Coach.
 
While with the Reddies, Rutledge helped lead the charge for Henderson State to claim its first and only Great American Conference Tournament championship title in the 2019-20 season, which was also the first conference title in 17 years. The Oklahoman coached up the top defensive field goal percentage team in the conference for three consecutive seasons (2019-22) as well as aided in the development in nine all-league selections that he also recruited. Winning on the court is always great, but the most elite part of Rutledge’s time in Arkadelphia was the 100 percent graduation rate in the classroom during his occupancy. Rutledge could include himself in that statistic as he acquired his Masters of Sports Administration at the Henderson State.
 
The place where Rutledge got his coaching career started is the same place he will call home as the Sooner State native began his distinguished career at Southern Arkansas University. A graduate assistant coach for the Mulerider Men’s Basketball team was Rutledge’s start as he worked under SAU great Andy Sharpe in the 2017-18 campaign that saw the Muleriders go 15-14 and finish at the GAC Tournament.
 
Rutledge came to Southern Arkansas after spending time as a student assistant at the University of Central Arkansas as he completed his Bachelors of Science degree in Health Education. Prior to his time as a student assistant, Rutledge played his final two seasons on the hardwood for the UCA Bears, where he started 56 of 57 games across the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons. Over his two-year career at UCA, Rutledge averaged 8.7 points per game and was a 43% shooter overall from the floor. Before his time as a Bear, Rutledge played for the Connors State College Cowboys for the 2009-10 season and claimed honors for second-team all-region and all-conference.
 
Following his collegiate career, Rutledge took his talents to Battle Creek, Michigan where he played for the Independent Basketball Association’s (IBA) Battle Creek Knights which are now known as the Battle Creek Flight since 2014. Rutledge then took his playing career to Europe as he went on to play for the Shoqata Tirana of Albania Superliga.