Mississippi Valley State University

Mississippi Valley State University

Mississippi Valley State University is a historically black university located in Itta Bena, Mississippi. The university is commonly referred to as MVSU or simply "The Valley." MVSU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.

The institution, which opened in 1950, was created by the Mississippi Legislature as Mississippi Vocational College. The legislature anticipated that legal segregation of public education was in danger (and would in four years be declared unconstitutional in the United States Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education) and created the institution, hoping that its existence would draw African-American applicants who might have otherwise applied to attend Mississippi's premier whites-only institutions -- the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, and the University of Southern Mississippi. Creating separate institutions of higher learning for Mississippi's black population, the state's political leaders hoped, would help ease the pressure to integrate the state's premier universities. To attract the support of those who opposed any government action to provide higher education to blacks, those proposing creation of M.V.C. used the term "vocational" to imply that the institution's main purpose would be to train blacks to take on blue-collar jobs.

The original legislative proposal would have located M.V.C. in Greenwood, but the white leadership of that city did not like the idea of hosting an institution that would attract young, ambitious blacks to the area. Thus, the proposed site was moved to Itta Bena. Even that town, however, objected to too close a proximity of a black institution, so the final site was chosen to place the college away from the downtown area, on cheap, uncultivatable land.

In 1964, Mississippi Vocational College was renamed Mississippi Valley State College.

In 1970, a student boycott was organized to protest President White's administration of the institution. Half the enrolled students of the institution -- about 900 -- were arrested. However, White was ousted as president soon afterward.

In the early 1970s, civil rights leaders continued to protest the inequalities in higher education opportunities offered to whites and blacks in Mississippi. In an effort to defuse some of the criticism, Gov. Bill Waller proposed changing the names of three black institutions from "colleges" to "universities." Thus, in 1974, the institution was renamed again, as Mississippi Valley State University.

In 1998, the university renamed many of the buildings on campus, except for the ones named after Sillers, Wright, and J. H. White.

MVSU's colors are kelly green and white. Their nickname is the Delta Devils for men's teams and Devilettes for women's teams. MVSU sports teams participate in NCAA Division I (I-AA for football) in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). Famous alumni include NFL wide receiver Jerry Rice.

The Mississippi Valley State University Department of Athletics currently sponsors Men's Intercollegiate baseball, football, basketball, cross country, golf, tennis and track along with Women's Intercollegiate basketball, soccer, volleyball, cross country, golf, softball, bowling and track.

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Davis Weathersby

Davis Weathersby was the eighth head college football coach for the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils located in Itta Bena, Mississippi and he held that position for eight seasons, from 1970 until 1977. His coaching record at Mississippi Valley State was 33 wins, 45 losses, and 0 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him third at Mississippi Valley State in total wins and fifth at Mississippi Valley State in winning percentage (0.423).

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John A. Bell

John A. Bell was the fourth head college football coach for the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils located in Itta Bena, Mississippi and he held that position for two seasons, from 1959 until 1960. His coaching record at Mississippi Valley State was 5 wins, 9 losses, and 2 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him eighth at Mississippi Valley State in total wins and eighth at Mississippi Valley State in winning percentage (0.375).

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Ulysses S. McPherson

Ulysses S. McPherson was the second head college football coach for the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils located in Itta Bena, Mississippi and he held that position for four seasons, from 1954 until 1957. His coaching record at Mississippi Valley State was 25 wins, 9 losses, and 3 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him fourth at Mississippi Valley State in total wins and first at Mississippi Valley State in winning percentage (0.716).

McPherson later went on to be the head coach at Jackson State University where he accumulated a two-year record of 6 wins and 13 losses.

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Curtis Maddox

Curtis "Curt" Maddox was the sixth head college football coach for the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils located in Itta Bena, Mississippi and he held that position for two seasons, from 1966 until 1967. His coaching record at Mississippi Valley State was 4 wins, 14 losses, and 0 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him 11th at Mississippi Valley State in total wins and 11th at Mississippi Valley State in winning percentage (0.222).

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Cleophers Hatcher

Cleophers Hatcher was the first head college football coach for the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils located in Itta Bena, Mississippi and he held that position for the 1953 season. His coaching record at Mississippi Valley State was 2 wins, 4 losses, and 0 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2007 season, this ranks him 12th at Mississippi Valley State in total wins and ninth at Mississippi Valley State in winning percentage (0.333).

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Sean Woods

Sean Woods is an American former basketball player who is currently serving as the head coach of the Mississippi Valley State University men's basketball team. He had previously been an assistant coach at Texas Christian University.

Woods played college basketball at Kentucky. As a Wildcat in 1992, he was a member of a senior-laden team colloquially known as the "Unforgettables" who had come to Kentucky in 1988 and had stayed with the school all four years despite a major scandal that put Kentucky on NCAA probation until the 1992 season, in which they were allowed to participate in postseason play again.

The Unforgettables, coached by Rick Pitino and also including fellow seniors Richie Farmer, Deron Feldhaus, and John Pelphrey, surprised many by garnering a #2 seed and reaching the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament that year. Woods and the Wildcats defeated Old Dominion, Iowa State and UMass en route to the regional final. With a 29-6 record, the Wildcats faced off against Duke at the Spectrum in Philadelphia with a trip to the Final Four on the line.

In that game against Duke, often cited as the greatest college basketball game of all time, Woods cemented a legendary status in Kentucky lore by pouring in 21 points, none more important than a 10-foot (3.0 m) floater over Christian Laettner that bounced off the backboard and dropped into the basket in overtime. The basket gave Kentucky a 103-102 lead with 2.1 seconds remaining. Unfortunately for Woods, the Unforgettables would lose the game on Laettner's subsequent jumper as time expired.

Woods went to the NBA and played for the Indiana Pacers, but not making the roster. He ran a popular basketball camp during his time in the NBA, which polished future players such as Tony Delk and Antoine Walker (both of whom played at Kentucky). He was an assistant coach at High Point University before he came to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, also as an assistant.

In 2005, Woods became a charter member of the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the Unforgettables. Immediately following the Duke loss, every Kentucky senior's jersey (though not their numbers) was retired. Woods is currently fifth all-time on Kentucky's career assist list, with 482. He is married and has two children. His son Martiese Morones, a high school point guard in Kentucky, was signed by TCU for the 2006-07 season. Woods would join the TCU staff shortly afterwards.

On June 24, 2008, Woods became the head coach of the Mississippi Valley State University men's basketball team.

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