The most successful basketball coach in Laurel High history is headed to the coast for a new gig.
On Monday night, Marcus Price was approved as the new girls’ basketball coach at Gulfport High School, ending his run as Laurel’s head basketball coach in which he won two state championships.
Known by many as the most well-dressed male coach in Mississippi high school basketball, Price brought Laurel’s program to new heights during his eight-year run. Under his direction, Laurel produced high-profile players such as Rickey Holden, Troymain Crosby and two-sport star Dontario Drummond.
“I am forever indebted to Laurel,” Price said. “I don’t have the words to express my gratitude for the city and school. The administration could not have been better to me or my staff over the years. I have been blessed with the best assistant coaches you could ask for. Laurel gave me my first opportunity as a head coach, and I have loved my time here.
“This is a place that will forever be special to me. Sometimes for a coach and a program, there comes a time for change. Gulfport is one of the most storied basketball programs in the state, and the opportunity was too good to pass up. This allows me to start fresh with new and exciting challenges, and it will allow someone to come into Laurel and put their mark on and build the program.”
Price, whose father Casey was a longtime successful coach at South Jones High School, was at the helm of the program during the 2014-15 season, when one of the greatest controversies in state high school basketball history occurred. In the state semifinals facing Callaway — which was led by Malik Newman, one of the top players in the nation — the Chargers were granted an illegal sixth timeout that resulted in them winning the game.
“After they gave them the timeout, I told (MHSAA Assistant Director for Athletics Robert Holloway) that they didn’t have any more timeouts and he said to me, ‘What do you want me to do about it?’ And I said to him to make it right,” Price said immediately after Laurel fell to Callaway in the controversial manner.
But Price rebounded from the ordeal and brought the program to back-to-back state championships in 2016 and 2017. Price said he cherished every team and player he coached, and the memories of those two teams are some of his favorites.
“I told the group who won the first state championship that they would do that when I was the ninth-grade coach,” Price said. “At the time, I didn’t know I would be the varsity head coach when they did.
“I remember being in the locker room before playing Wayne County,” Price said. “Keon Howard gave a speech about what it meant to be from Laurel, and everything we had gone through to get to that game. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room. We came out a little emotional in the first half, but we settled down to win the state championship that season. I will always take that with me.”
Price believes he can make a major impact on a Gulfport team that has been up and down the past few seasons. But to his fans and former players who stuck with him over the years at Laurel, he wants them to know what their support means to him.
“Thank you,” Price said. “Once again, I don’t have the words to express my gratitude. It is difficult to leave a place that has meant so much to you, but I am confident the program will be in good hands.”
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