The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Announces Smith Contract Extension
8/16/2017 | Softball
OXFORD, Miss. - Fresh off the best season in school history and the Rebels' first SEC Tournament Championship, Ole Miss softball head Mike Smith was award with a four-year contract extension, Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics Ross Bjork announced Wednesday.
Smith, who is 114-67 in three seasons in Oxford, received a four-year extension, which is the longest allowed by the state of Mississippi.
"What Ole Miss Softball has accomplished in three years under Mike Smith is truly remarkable," said Bjork. "He has not only transformed Ole Miss into one of the top rising programs in the nation, but his squad has inspired Rebel Nation and introduced the sport to our fans. The future is very bright for Ole Miss Softball."
"Ole Miss is a special place with the best fans in the country, and I am fortunate to work with an incredible staff and a group of quality young ladies and softball players that continue to represent this university the right way," Smith said. "I appreciate the confidence and commitment Ross, (Executive Associate A.D.) Lynnette (Johnson) and the University of Mississippi has shown my staff, myself and the entire softball program. We have a talented team for the 2018 season. With our returning core and newcomers, Rebel Nation will not be disappointed in what they see from Ole Miss Softball this coming season. We are excited about the present and future of this program. We look forward to getting back out on the diamond soon. Hotty Toddy!"
The turnaround job led by Smith has been nothing short of remarkable for a program that posted just three winning seasons before this arrival.
In 2017, the Rebels earned the No. 12 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and advanced all the way to Super Regionals, dropping two highly contested one-run games at No. 5 seed UCLA. The Rebels hosted and swept their first NCAA Regional, defeating Southern Illinois, Arizona State and North Carolina, and also claimed the school's first ever SEC Tournament title.
Ole Miss topped Mississippi State, shocked No. 1 Florida, beat No. 15 Alabama for the third time that season, and eventually knocked off No. 21 LSU for the fourth time to claim the school's first-ever SEC Tournament title in 2017.
For the second-straight year, three of Smith's players earned NFCA All-South Region honors, as Elantra Cox picked up First Team accolades for the second consecutive year. Kylan Becker and Kaitlin Lee were named Third Team selections. Becker, a rising star in the outfield, became the school's first ever All-SEC First Team selection, while Lee picked up Second Team All-SEC honors. Freshman Morgan Bruce became the school's first ever pitcher to earn All-Freshman Team honors.
To mirror the team's success and breaking of records, the fans again did their part resetting the top-10 list of largest home crowds. The three NCAA Regional crowds alone all rank 1-2-3 on the single-game attendance list, as 1,709 saw the Rebels take down North Carolina in the regional final on Sunday. 1,677 witnessed Friday's opening day, and 1,539 braved out a rain delay for a three-day total of 4,925, which would better the series attendance record by nearly 2,000.
For all Ole Miss Softball news and information, go to OleMissSports.com and follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissSoftball, on Facebook at Ole Miss Softball and on Instagram at Instagram.com/olemisssoftball. Fans can also follow head coach Mike Smith on Twitter at @msmithsb16. Additionally fans can get a behind the scenes look at Ole Miss Athletics on Snapchat under the handle, @WeAreOleMiss.
