August 03, 2006
Barry Davis, a standout basketball player at Texas A&M in the mid-1970s, is returning to his alma mater as director of student-athlete development for men?â„¢s basketball.
?I?â„¢m excited about returning to A&M where I have a lot of great relationships with former students and within the university,? Davis said. ?We had some great teams when I was here as a player and coach and Coach (Billy) Gillispie wants to surpass what we did. All the coaches in the state, from junior high to the professional level, recognize and appreciate the job he?â„¢s done. The results on the floor have been great, but the excitement and passion he?â„¢s created for basketball here is even more impressive. ?
The 52-year-old Davis was inducted into Texas A&M?â„¢s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999. He comes to A&M after 10 years as head coach at Grand Prairie (Texas) High School, where he had a 179-124 record.
Davis twice earned first-team All-Southwest Conference honors after helping the Aggies win consecutive conference titles in 1975 and 1976. The 1975 squad finished 20-7 -- the first 20-win season in school history -- and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The 1976 Aggies went 21-6 with Davis serving as team co-captain.
He graduated from A&M in 1976 and was hired as the school?â„¢s assistant director of college admissions and records. Davis joined Shelby Metcalf?â„¢s staff as an assistant coach from 1977-82, helping the Aggies to a 24-9 record in 1978-79 and a school-record 26-8 mark in 1979-80.
The 1979 team pulled off one of the greatest wins in school history when it defeated Kentucky, 73-69, at Rupp Arena. The 1980 squad won the SWC regular-season and tournament titles and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament after a double-overtime win against North Carolina. A&M then lost in overtime to eventual national champion Louisville.
?It?â„¢s an honor and a pleasure to have Barry back at Texas A&M,? Gillispie said. ?He?â„¢ll be a tremendous asset in our quest to accomplish great things. I?â„¢ve been after Barry to come back here ever since I got the job two years ago. In that time, we?â„¢ve discussed the challenges and he?â„¢s assured me since day one that we could win here. Four of the greatest seasons in A&M history happened with Barry as a player or coach.?
Davis was head coach at Western Texas College from 1982-84, earning region coach of the year honors after leading the team to a fifth-place finish in the national junior college tournament. He returned to A&M as associate director of the Office of School Relations from 1984-86.
From 1986-88, he served as an assistant coach at North Texas, helping the team to its first Southland Conference title and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Davis was head coach at Bryan High School from 1988-94, earning a variety of coaching honors, and at Seguin High School from 1994-96.
A native of Galveston, Davis was a standout player at Ball High School and played his freshman year in college at Sam Houston State. He transferred to Hill Junior College for his sophomore year and played in the national junior college tournament.
Davis joins assistant coach Jeremy Cox as new members of Gillispie's staff. Gillipsie has one position left to fill.