Mark Price
Baylor School has named Belmont University's Mark Price as the boys' varsity basketball coach, following veteran basketball coach Austin Clark's announcement in April that he would be retiring after 36 years of coaching the Red Raiders.
"I am very excited that Mark will be leading our boys' basketball program. Throughout this process, we interviewed many individuals who are fantastic basketball coaches.
Mark rose to the top of our applicant pool, and I am confident that he will be a great fit for the Baylor community. I also feel strongly that he will continue to develop the basketball skills of our players; but, more importantly, he will work closely with students and help develop their character," said Thad Lepcio, Baylor's athletic director.
"That Mark rose to the top of an incredibly strong candidate pool speaks volumes about his coaching ability and, more importantly, the human impact he will make across our campus," added Baylor headmaster Scott Wilson. "We are getting a wonderful coach and an even better man. We look forward to welcoming Mark and his family to Baylor."
Price has served as an assistant coach for the Division I Belmont Bruins since 2011. During his tenure there, the Bruins have gone 144-55, won six consecutive conference championships, received national Top 25 poll votes six out of seven campaigns, earned victories over North Carolina, Marquette, Stanford, Georgia, and nationally-ranked Murray State, posted the nation's longest home court win streak and road win streak, and reached the quarterfinal round of the Postseason NIT.
Prior to Belmont, Price spent two seasons as head coach at Ouachita Baptist University, an NCAA Division II member institution located in Arkadelphia, Ark. Price also spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Furman University and five seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, helping UAH to the 2002-03 Gulf South Conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2003 and 2006. In 2001, Price was a key piece in Faulkner (AL) University finishing with a 34-5 record en route to the 2001 NAIA National Championship. He began his coaching career in 1998 as an assistant at the University of Mobile. The Rams won five NAIA national tournament games in Price's two campaigns.
In addition to his coaching duties, Price has served as a campus leader for Belmont University ministries and the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) organization, leading a group of Bruin student-athletes on mission trips to Kenya, Haiti, and South Dakota.
A native of Brandenburg, Ky., Price earned a bachelor's degree in secondary education from Samford University in 1998. He and his wife, Kara, have two daughters, Kate and Kallie.