New Mississippi State coach Ben Howland surprised students in class
Ben Howland, who was hired as the new basketball coach at Mississippi State on Monday, made a surprise visit to some students in a government class on Tuesday.
Howland threw out some T-shirts and made sure to take a few selfies with the members of his new fan base.
The students seemed pretty happy to meet the new coach and to pick up a few souvenirs.
Howland, who has worked as a television analyst since leaving UCLA after the 2012-2013 season, brings a 399-208 record over 19 seasons as a Division I coach to Starkville, including three consecutive Final Four appearances with the Bruins from 2006-08.
Howland has been to the NCAA tournament 10 times — once at Northern Arizona, twice at Pitt and seven times in 10 seasons at UCLA.
He replaces Rick Ray, who was fired after the Bulldogs were 12-19 this season, their third losing season in three years under Ray.
- Phil Watson