A visit with Ole Miss’ Matt Murrell on his basketball journey, his time at Ole Miss, head coach Chris Beard and more
OXFORD, Miss. — One of the brightest parts of this past spring in Oxford, MS, was Matt Murrell’s decision to withdraw from the NBA Draft and return to Ole Miss for his final season of basketball.
— Matthew🏀🤘🏽 (@mattmurrell_) May 29, 2024
Rebel fans are excited to see the All-SEC Second Team player finish out his career strong as he looks to lead the Ole Miss toward a successful run to the NCAA Tournament. We sat down with Matt to find out more about his life growing up and his experiences as a basketball player and Ole Miss Rebel.
Murrell, a Memphis, Tenn. native, led the team in scoring last season for the third straight time, averaging 16.2 points per game and shooting 46.4% from the field. He finished the season with 1,444 career points, the 16th most in program history.
Murrell grew up loving to be outside but enjoyed playing videos games as well. One of six kids, he told us what life was like growing up.
“I have four brothers and one sister,” Matt began. “So, you can tell the household was real competitive. You know, we grew up always playing the game, competing against each other no matter what the game was. When it was all of us at my dad’s house playing, we’d always be outside. Sometimes, I’d just go out there by myself. I’d be shooting, whether it was ten o’clock at night or eight in the morning.”
Basketball was not Murrell’s first sport to play. Football came first, followed by basketball. As he grew older, he continued to play basketball, gave up football and added track. Ultimately, basketball won out.
Murrell played travel basketball and received his first Division I offer when he was in the tenth grade. That was when he realized what the future might hold for him.
“Once I got that first offer in tenth grade, I began to think I might really have a chance to play in college. I didn’t feel pressure from it. It was motivation. I was like all this hard work I’ve been doing for years is finally starting to pay off; so let me keep working harder.”
Matt Murrell
Murrell held offers from a number of different colleges as he was ending his high school career, including Arkansas, Memphis, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Florida, Illinois, Alabama and LSU, to name a few. But when he took his visit to Ole Miss, it just felt like the right place to be.
“I had choices coming out of high school, but when I took my visit here at Ole Miss, it just felt like home. You know, I fell in love with the coaching staff, fell in love with the City of Oxford and the school itself.”
Matt Murrell on choosing Ole Miss
COVID robbed athletes across the country of a year of their college career, but Murrell is taking advantage of the extra year provided to come back for year five instead of declaring for the NBA draft. When asked how he felt about returning for a final season Murrell related, “This will be my 5th year at Ole Miss. I feel like I started a legacy that I need to finish here.”
Last season in a game versus Troy, Murrell set a school record for steals in one game. We asked him if he was aware during the game that he was close to beating the record. “Actually, I did have an idea. One of our player development coaches, said that in the game. He was like, ‘You’ve got eight steals.’ I was like, ‘I do? I didn’t know that.’ At that point, I was just starting to hunt the steals.”
Murrell has accomplished a great deal in his years as a Rebel. He explained to us what motivates him on the court and in the classroom.
“My family motivates me for both. Family, and then being self-driven, just the will to want to be great. But also trying to make my family proud, whether it’s on the court or off the court.”
Matt Murrell
Coach John Reilly, Strength and Conditioning coach for Ole Miss Men’s Basketball, is known for his ability to improve players’ strength and mental toughness. We asked Murrell how Coach Reilly has helped improve Matt’s own game and mental toughness.
“Mental toughness and handling adversity for sure,” Murrell related.
“Some of his workouts are very unique. You have to be mentally tough to push through it. But, I mean, it all translates to the court. There’s going to be some adverse times on the court you probably haven’t faced before — ones you didn’t know you were going to face in the moment, but you have to persevere. It has helped me on the court. It’s helped me be more explosive. Conditioning-wise, I try to stay in tip-top shape and just try to find any way I can to get an edge over the opponent.”
Matt Murrell on how Coach Reilly has helped increased his toughness
Rebels’ head coach Chris Beard was quoted at SEC Media Days 2024 as saying, “We are really glad to have Matt Murrell back for what will be his final season in college basketball. I’ve said this before, not to repeat myself, but Matt’s one of the best players I’ve ever coached in college.”
That is a huge compliment coming from a coach as accomplished as Coach Beard. We asked Murrell to comment on what he thinks Coach Beard has brought to Ole Miss.
“Man, I feel like he brought life to the program, to the fans. I feel like people wanted a new start for Ole Miss, and he gave it a new start. Attendance was up, especially the student section, record numbers, and scheduling improved. We’re hoping to do even better this year.”
Matt Murrell on what Coach Beard brings to the program
The pressure from social media can take its toll on athletes. Fans, media, and others sometimes forget players don’t practice to lose, and they have feelings, interests and opinions outside of their sport. Murrell explained how he, as an athlete, handles social media and all it brings on a daily basis. “Personally, I view social media as just a part of sports now,” Murrell noted. “You know, everybody’s entitled to their own opinion. But as a player, you have to understand that everybody might not agree with you, everybody might not like what you’re doing. You have to make sure you’re always doing what’s best for yourself and your team.”
NIL and the transfer portal are among the topics most discussed in the world of athletics. Murrell explained how he views the two. “It’s changed the game for sure,” he commented. “You know, before all the rule changes, you would see teams together for two, three years because they knew if they transferred out they had to sit out. Most people didn’t want to do that. But now it’s like, free agency. You could play with a group of guys one year, and the next year play with a whole different group of guys.”
In as successful a career as Murrell has had, you would think it would be difficult for him to choose one game he felt was the one that impacted him the most. But Murrell was quick to answer.
“It was a game that kind of gave me a lot of confidence moving throughout my college career. I think it was sophomore year we played Mississippi State here at home. And I had 31 points. I feel like that gave me a lot of confidence just overall. Like, I can hang with this. I can do this.”
Matt Murrell on what game impacted him the most as a player
Murrell and his teammates felt the love from fans last year, and he says their support gives them a home court advantage that doesn’t go unnoticed.
“Man, home court advantage is very important. It’s a real thing. We feel like we shouldn’t lose a game at home. You know, that’s the goal. We should not lose a game at home. We feel like we shouldn’t lose any game, but more importantly at home. We can credit that to the fans. We have such a great student section. We have a great fan base, too. I appreciate them for showing up last year. You know, it really meant a lot for somebody that has been through the ups and downs of Ole Miss basketball, it really meant a lot to me personally.”
Matt Murrell on what the fans mean to him
Murrell says year five as an Ole Miss Rebel is bittersweet, but he is excited about the NBA draft and a future playing professional basketball. We asked him what he wishes fan knew about him and about this year’s team. “I wish they would know how hard we work, day in and day out, just to, you know, put on the best performance of Ole Miss basketball day in and day out,” he said. “We appreciate them coming in and supporting us.”
Fans will continue to cheer on Matt Murrell as he helps lead the Rebels through the 2024-25 season, wishing him a safe and healthy final season. He is looking to end his tenure at Ole Miss with a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Hotty Toddy to one of the fans’ most-favorite players to come through the Ole Miss Men’s Basketball program!
Next Up
For the second straight season, the Ole Miss men’s basketball team will play in a “Throwback Game at the Tad Pad” presented by Oxford Ortho. Tonight, the No. 25 Rebels will host South Alabama at 7 p.m. while honoring former head coach Bob Weltlich and his former teams.
Donna Sprabery
Donna Sprabery is a former teacher, graduation coach, and academic coach for boys basketball. She graduated from the University of West Alabama with a major in business education and from Arkansas State University with a MA in Educational Leadership. A native of Meridian, MS, Donna enjoys traveling, gardening, writing, volunteer work, and cheering on the Rebels.
