Corey Gipson

BIRTHPLACE Sikeston, Missouri WIFE April CHILDREN Jordan, Tanner and Frankie HIGH SCHOOL Richland (Mo.) HS COLLEGE Austin Peay DEGREES Health Management (BS) Public Health (MS)

corey gipson Head coach 1st year at NSU and overall

Corey Gipson arrived at Northwestern State with a reputation as a standout recruiter, talent developer and builder of young men.

Entering his first season as the Demons' head coach, the 41-year-old Gipson will have a chance to build a program in his image after spending the past seven seasons as an asssistant and associate head coach at Missouri State.

During his Missouri State tenure, Gipson coached a trio of Missouri Valley Conference Newcomers of the Year – Tulio Da Silva, Dequon Miler and Alize Johnson. Johnson has spent the past four seasons on NBA rosters, appearing in 23 games this season for Chicago, Washington and New Orleans.

In the 2021-22 season, Isiaih Mosley had a 50-40-90 season (50 percent shooting from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range and 90 percent from the free-throw line), one year after being named the captain of the Missouri Valley Conference’s Most Improved Team.

A fast riser in the coaching ranks, Gipson was named Missouri State’s associate head coach June 2, 2016, 11 months after joining the Bears staff following a three-year stint at his alma mater, Austin Peay.

During Gipson’s six years as the Bears’ associate head coach, Missouri State averaged 17.6 wins per season. The Bears recently finished the 2021-22 season with a 23-11 record and a berth in the National Invitational Tournament.

As an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator with the Governors, Gipson helped develop Chris Horton into the program’s all-time leader in blocked shots and one of just 13 players in Division I history to score 1,500 points, grab 1,000 rebounds and block 300 shots.

Gipson spent three years at UNC Greensboro from 2009-12, the last two as the associate head coach.

A native of Sikeston, Missouri, Gipson began his coaching career at Virginia State University, a Division II school in Petersburg, Virginia. There, Gipson spent four seasons as recruiting coordinator, helping build the base of a 2007 conference championship team led by first-team all-conference selection and Defensive Player of the Year Avis Wyatt.

Gipson’s playing career included two seasons as a point guard at Austin Peay where he helped coach Dave Loos’ Governors become the best defensive team in the Ohio Valley conference. In Gipson’s two seasons, the Governors were a perfect 27-0 at home as he averaged 7.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while making 94 3-pointers.

Gipson helped push Austin Peay to consecutive OVC championships (2002-03 and 2003-04) and a berth in the 2003 NCAA Tournament.

A two-time graduate of Austin Peay and the 2012 Austin Peay Young Alumnus of the Year, Gipson began his playing career at Three Rivers Community College in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, before transferring to Austin Peay to finish his career.

Gipson was a Mr. Show-Me Basketball nominee as a senior at Richland High School, averaging 30.9 points per game and earning consensus all-state honors.

He and his wife, April, have three children – Jordan, Tanner and Frankie.

The Gipson family (from left): April, Frankie, Corey, Tanner and Jordan at Corey Gipson's introductory news conference in March 2022. What Gipson said ...

Below are excerpts from Corey Gipson's introductory Northwestern State news conference March 23, 2022 "We don't often understand why we're put into different positions of change in life, and I didn't understand it as a kid. But I know God put me in that position to prepare me for today and prepare me for this change. I guarantee you this change won't be harder than (losing his mother at age 9) … and just like we worked through that change as a family, we'll work through this change with this new family." "I've been in Louisiana and Texas to recruit, and I'm familiar with this land and the AAU programs and coaches. But it's not about recruiting a certain area, it's about recruiting the right person who comes in with the mentality we're looking for. I'm not from Louisiana but it's a divine situation where we feel like we're the right fit for the program, and we're very thankful for the opportunity." "You can be guaranteed we are going to put our best foot forward and go about winning in every way. One thing our guys are going to hear every day is it has to be 100 percent buy in, 100 percent of the time. That's the only way we will operate around here and nothing else will be tolerated when it comes to the clasroom, work ethic and how we go about our business in the community."