| Rick Ray | |
| Current Title: | Assistant coach |
| Current Team: | Vanderbilt |
| Current Conference: | Southeastern Conference |
| Birth Date: | 8 May 1970 |
| Birth Place: | Compton, California, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Grand View |
| Player Years1: | ?–1994 |
| Player Team1: | Grand View |
| Coach Years1: | 1996–1997 |
| Coach Team1: | Omaha (graduate assistant) |
| Coach Years2: | 1997–2004 |
| Coach Team2: | Indiana State (assistant) |
| Coach Years3: | 2004–2006 |
| Coach Team3: | Northern Illinois (assistant) |
| Coach Years4: | 2006–2010 |
| Coach Team4: | Purdue (assistant) |
| Coach Years5: | 2010–2012 |
| Coach Team5: | Clemson (assistant) |
| Coach Years6: | 2012–2015 |
| Coach Team6: | Mississippi State |
| Coach Years7: | 2015–2020 |
| Coach Team7: | Southeast Missouri State |
| Coach Years8: | 2020–2024 |
| Coach Team8: | Colorado (assistant) |
| Coach Years9: | 2024–present |
| Coach Team9: | Vanderbilt (assistant) |
| Overall Record: | 88–164 |
Rick Ray (born May 8, 1970) is an American college basketball coach who is an assistant coach at Vanderbilt University. He was formerly the head men's basketball coach at Mississippi State and Southeast Missouri State.[1]
Ray was born in Compton, California; however, his family moved to Kansas City, Kansas when Ray was 6 years old. He is an All-American Scholar Athlete basketball player who played at Grand View College, where he majored in Applied Mathematics and Secondary Education. After graduation, Ray worked as an actuary in Chicago, but soon realized that he wanted to be a basketball coach. He quit his actuary job and became a coach and teacher at a high school in Des Moines, Iowa.[2] After years, he left to become a graduate assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha. While at Nebraska-Omaha, he also earned a master's degree in Sports Administration. From there, Ray was an assistant coach at Indiana State, Northern Illinois, Purdue, and Clemson, before being hired by Mississippi State.[3]
Upon hiring Ray, Mississippi State Athletics Director Scott Stricklin said, “Rick fits the model of head coach we have sought to bring into our program over the last several years. He is bright, enthusiastic, disciplined and is a man of integrity. He has served with some of the top head and assistant coaches in college basketball and will bring a piece of all of them to our head coaching position.” [4]
On March 21, 2015 Ray was fired by Mississippi State.[5] He was subsequently hired by Southeast Missouri State. After finishing the 2019–20 season with a 7–24 record, Ray was let go by Southeast Missouri State.[6]
On July 20, 2020, Ray was hired by Colorado as an assistant coach. He helped lead the Buffaloes to two NCAA tournament bids in 2021 and 2024.[7] Ray left Colorado following the conclusion of the 2023–24 season to join the staff at Vanderbilt as an assistant coach.[8]