Morehead State's Preston Spradlin named head coach at James Madison

Morehead State‘s Preston Spradlin is taking his coaching talents to James Madison, ending his eight-year career with the Eagles after spending five at Kentucky under John Calipari as a graduate assistant and assistant director of operations.

Mark Byington left the Dukes to take over the head coaching vacancy at Vanderbilt left behind by Jerry Stackhouse. The coaching carousel landed on the Pikeville native to take over a program coming off an NCAA Tournament second round appearance and historic 32-4 record, signing him to a six-year contract.

“Preston stood out at the top of our list as we researched candidates based upon the resume that he’s built at a very young age as a head coach,” JMU Director of Athletics Jeff Bourne said. “Once we met with him, it was even more evident that he’s the total package in a head coach. The results speak for themselves, but beyond the results we found a genuine and authentic coach and teacher who cares about his student-athletes, about his institution and the community. Given our recent success at James Madison, our facility, our resources and the enthusiasm of our fanbase, we believe Preston is the right coach to build something truly special in Harrisonburg.”

“My family and I are extremely excited for the opportunity to lead the JMU program and take over during a monumental time for the University!” Spradlin added. “Throughout this process it was of the upmost importance that we not only found a great basketball program but also a caring community that we can embrace and continue to raise our family. We are looking forward to connecting with the many supporters of JMU Athletics and partnering together to compete for future championships! Go Dukes!”

Spradlin led MSU to a 140-109 career record with two OVC Tournament championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances. A national search for Morehead State’s next coach will begin immediately.

“We absolutely want to thank Coach Spradlin for raising the prominence of our men’s basketball program to championship level and wish nothing but the best for his family and him as they move forward,” said Director of Athletic Kelly Wells. “Preston and his staff engaged and excited the community and created a winning culture on and off the court, developing our young men into servant leaders. Our goal with our next head coach and staff is to maintain that level of excellence in our program and build upon our recent success so that Morehead State men’s basketball remains the premier program in our conference and competes year in and year out for championships.”

He led MSU to four consecutive 20+ win seasons for the first time in program history, highlighted by a 26-win campaign this season with an NCAA berth. The two-time OVC Coach of the Year finishes as the third winningest men’s basketball coach in the history of the program.

Spradlin led MSU to four consecutive 20+ win seasons for the first time in program history, culminating this season in a school-record 26 wins and the team’s second OVC Tournament title and NCAA berth in the past four seasons. He finishes his time as the third winningest men’s basketball head coach in the history of the program.