Winston-Salem State has decided to move on from Men’s Basketball Head Coach Corey Thompson after less than two years on the job.
The surprising announcement came on Saturday (Feb. 14) before the Rams’ final home game vs. Shaw and comes just ten days before the team is scheduled to compete in the Feb. 24-28 CIAA Basketball Tournament in Baltimore.
Assistant Coach Tony Jones has been named interim head coach. Jones previously served as an assistant at UNC Pembroke (2020-21) and Fayetteville State (2017-19), where he also stepped in as interim head coach during the 2019-20 season.
The university said it will immediately begin a comprehensive search for the next head coach and will share updates as they become available.
The Rams, under Jones, fell to Shaw 73-52 Saturday. They had two regular season games remaining this week at Johnson C. Smith Wednesday (Feb. 18) and the finale Saturday (Feb. 21) at Livingstone.
Thompson, who played at WSSU from 1998-2002 under former head coach Rick Duckett, was hired in July 2024. This season. his team had compiled a 7-15 overall mark, 2-11 against CIAA competition and 0-7 vs. the league’s South Division opponents. The Rams finished the 2024-25 season at 5-22 overall, 2-13 in conference play and 2-8 in S. Div. play. They fell 58-42 to Lincoln (PA) in the first round of last year’s CIAA Tournament.
Thompson replaced Cleo Hill Jr. who won CIAA Tournament titles in 2020 and 2023 before stepping down in 2024 to become the men’s head coach at Maryland-Eastern Shore.
