Ep. 338 Sam Purcell, Mississippi State Bulldogs

In this week's episode, Coach Brendan Suhr is joined by Sam Purcell, head coach of Mississippi State women's basketball.

Purcell takes us through his journey that began in Dalton, Georgia, ran through junior college in Wadley, Alabama, and turned on a chance decision to cold-call Cliff Ellis at Auburn — leading to a video-room scholarship, nine years alongside Jeff Walz at Louisville, and now his fifth season leading the Bulldogs. Along the way he shares what his parents taught him about opportunity and relationships, and how a round of golf changed his life.

From there the two get into the craft: how recruiting became a lifestyle rather than an event, building culture when you mayonly have a player for nine months, why Walz ran a season on five practice plans, and what Purcell learned watching Cori Close at UCLA. He also breaks down his style of play, coaching a roster with players from five countries, and why he'd rather find the right system for his players than force his players into a system.

All that and more on Episode 338 of the Coaching U Podcast presented by Noah Basketball.

Noah Basketball is trusted by 28 NBA teams, over 200 NCAA programs, and over 1,000 high school programs to capture and analyze key shooting metrics to help your players perfect their shot and reach their max potential.
Learn more at noahbasketball.com

The full video set from Coaching U Live 2026 in Las Vegas is now live on Coaching U+ — every speaker, every session, every strategy from all three days.
Access our entire library of coaching clinic videos anytime, anywhere, on any device — including the full archive from every previous Coaching U Live event.
Watch NOW: https://coachinguplus.com
Not a member? Save 20% off your membership to Coaching U+ by using promo code PODCAST20 at checkout