Mississippi State women’s basketball has national title hopes again. It can thank Sam Purcell

Sam Purcell was stopped at a red light in Starkville last month when the driver in the car beside him honked their horn and rolled their window down.

Immediately, Purcell started to worry.

“Oh gosh,” Purcell thought. “I ran in front of somebody, and they’re mad at me.”

When Purcell rolled down his window, he got a much different reaction. In the other car was a Mississippi State women’s basketball fan.

“Coach, we love you,” the fan said. “Why not us?”

Purcell responded with a smirk and a nod, reiterating the phrase his team bought into while making a run to the second round of NCAA Tournament in his first season as coach of the Bulldogs.

“Why not us,” Purcell said.

As much as X’s and O’s determine success in the sport, getting players to believe is just as important for coaches. Purcell learned that from his mentors – most notably Louisville coach Jeff Walz who Purcell coached under for nine years before coming to Starkville.

Purcell believes in order to see success, one has to envision it. He wants his players to speak it into existence and not shy away from expectations. To say it is to believe it. And Purcell believes it.

“We’re going to go really far,” freshman guard Mjracle Sheppard said last month. “I believe we can win a championship.”

To see expectations that high is no small feat for Purcell. A year ago, he was stepping into a role he never held. He inherited a roster of seven active players. Mississippi State was competing for a national titles before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, but Purcell was the fourth coach since the 2019-20 season was cut short.

MSU was spiraling. The solution for former athletics director John Cohen? He hired a coach who had never proven himself as a program builder. It was risky, but it turned out to be the right move. Purcell led MSU to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019 and went from a play-in game to the second round – the furthest run ever for a team in that spot on the women’s side.

His expectations for this season are higher, and the national attention has followed.

The Bulldogs added three top 25 transfers and three top 100 Class of 2023 recruits, according to ESPN. Along with key returners such as guard JerKaila Jordan and forward Jessika Carter, Mississippi State earned a preseason top 25 ranking from ESPN’s Charlie Creme.

While it may not seem like much right now, Purcell and his staff didn’t hesitate to rejoice. Then, they raised the bar.

FRESH INK: Mississippi State women’s basketball coach Sam Purcell gets one-year contract extension

“We celebrate a top 25,” Purcell said. “I know I did. Today, guess what? We’re hunting for top 10. It’s kind of the mindset like when they let us in the NCAA Tournament. Thank goodness the selection committee looked at our body of work and valued us as a team that should be in there. I told (players), now that they put us in there, you’ve got to prove why we deserve to be in there and they did that.

“For the same situation with the questions you’re asking me now − you put us in the top 25, now it’s our responsibility. Let’s hunt. Let’s eat. But then, let’s keep trying to climb up that ladder.”

Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.