The University of Mississippi Athletics
Sosebee Leads Lady Rebels Into The Community
10/17/2004 | Women's Basketball
Oct. 17, 2004
OXFORD, Miss. - As head coaches assemble their staff, they look for many different qualities among their candidates, looking for just the right combination of abilities for the perfect fit. They need coaches who can recruit, teach and mentor, however, a staff is not complete without just the right personality to handle all of the `behind the scenes' work.
When Ole Miss women's basketball head coach Carol Ross arrived in Oxford to take over the Lady Rebel program in March of 2003, she had the unenviable task of creating a staff completely from scratch. Her immediate move was to corral former Lady Rebel great Peggie Gillom as her associate head coach.
With Gillom on board, Ross quickly pulled the trigger, hiring another Lady Rebel of the past, Renee Ladner to be an assistant. She then filled out the coaching roster with a former pupil of hers during her time at Auburn, Jocelyn McGilberry.
After putting all of the pieces together for the perfect fit of on-the-court staff, Ross had one spot left to fill in the Coordinator of Basketball Operations. The position is one that fills many needs--a jack-of-all trades type of role. With that in mind, Ross knew just whom she wanted for the position.
Ginny Sosebee joined the Lady Rebel staff in August 2003 as the Coordinator of Basketball Operations and has been busy ever since. Sosebee's job description spans a whole page and includes such tasks as overseeing team travel and game-day organization.
"Ginny just has a great ability to make things happen," said Ross. "She is a great manager of organized chaos and that is what the Coordinator of Basketball Operations has to maintain. It is not an easy job pulling all of the loose ends together, but Ginny makes it look easy."
In addition to taking care of team travel and game-day organization, Sosebee also coordinates booster club activities, alumni relations and team public appearances. She helps organize the summer camps and serves as the liaison to the media relations office and the marketing department.
Among her many responsibilities, Sosebee is in charge of the Lady Rebel Kid's Club and the Ball Kids. She oversees the team banquet in the spring and the many socials and dinners they have throughout the season. She also organizes the yearly Alumni Reunion Weekend.
Sosebee has truly made her mark in the Ole Miss program with her unrelenting ability to get the Lady Rebel players involved with the City of Oxford and the Lafayette County communities. She has coordinated several outings for the players to establish and maintain relationships with community members such as visiting retirement homes, elementary schools and hospitals. On these outings, she has supervised the Lady Rebel players who perform skits and songs, as well as read books to children.
"Ginny is just a service oriented individual," said Ross. "It's in her personality to serve others and put their well being first. She has done a phenomenal job of getting our players involved with the local community.
"Our players are not just out completing a task by meeting with the citizens in the area though, because of Ginny's hard work, they are enjoying the experience. Being a student athlete is not just about what you do on the court and in the classroom. It is about learning to be a well-rounded individual. Through Ginny's hard work, our players are on their way to achieving that."
With all of the tasks Sosebee is in charge of she is kept running in all directions on a regular basis, but she manages to help keep the Lady Rebel ship sailing in the right direction.
