Houston coach Kelvin Sampson smiles as he speaks with media during the pre-Elite Eight press conference, Saturday, March 29, 2025, in Indianapolis, Ind. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
In a coaching career that has lasted well over four decades, Kelvin Sampson has accumulated a lifetime’s worth of memories and bonds with players and coaches alike.
Few of those bonds are tighter than the one Sampson shares with Tennessee coach Rick Barnes, or as Sampson calls him, “Little Ricky from Hickory.”
A question posed to Sampson during Saturday’s media session about their relationship evolved into a five-minute monologue expressing his admiration for Barnes, their intertwined friendship that began before their coaching careers, and affirmation that they both chose the right profession.
“Rick, his faith is really important to him. He and his wife Candy are two of my favorite people in the world,” Sampson said.
Sampson is no stranger to phone calls from former players and peers, whether it’s to congratulate him or to catch up and have a chat.
With Barnes, sometimes, those phone calls don’t even involve “hellos” or “goodbyes.”
“He’ll say, ‘Do you still run your 3-2 zone?’” Sampson said. “I’ll say, ‘Yeah.’ He’ll say, ‘I’m going to call you tomorrow to talk about that, alright?’” Then, he just hangs up.”
It’s one of Barnes’ many quirks that Sampson believes makes him one of a kind and a “jewel among jewels.”
Plenty connect the future hall of famers to the Red River rivalry between Oklahoma and Texas, as the two overlapped eight years as coaches of the decorated programs.
But it was long before Sampson was making the I-35 drive down from Norman, Okla. that he had his first run-ins with Barnes.
Prior to commanding programs as coaches, they did it as point guards of their respective colleges: Sampson with Pembroke State and Barnes at Lenior-Rhyne.
As they phased out of their playing careers and transitioned into coaching, both shot up the ranks from assistants to numerous head coaching stops before landing in the Big 12 conference.
Sampson and his Oklahoma Sooners earned a 12-8 advantage in head-to-head matchups against Barnes and his Texas Longhorns across those eight seasons they shared in the Big 12.
Despite shining on the sidelines, their performances on the golf course weren’t as stellar.
As a part of the OU-Texas football games festivities, charity fundraisers were held between the two schools’ golf programs, with the basketball coaches of the two schools assigned as captains.
The rules were simple enough: the spot where the coaches’ first shot landed would have a sign with the school logos, marking where the players had to finish the par 5.
The execution, on the other hand, told another story. Barnes’ shot was so far off the fairway that it sailed into a group of trees.
“It was such a bad shot you couldn’t even see the damn sign,” Sampson said. “You could kinda look through the trees over there and there was something white.”
As for Sampson, he managed to avoid the trees with his shot, but not the water.
“They got this little boat, they put a little sign out in that water that you had to get on the boat and go hit,” Sampson said. “That tells you how good of basketball coaches we are.”
Their loaded coaching resumes speak for themselves.
Sampson is four wins away from 800 in his career, and Barnes is the third-winningest active coach in college basketball with his 836 wins.
Both have won coach of the year across numerous conferences and have led their teams to regular-season conference titles.
Both are still vying for their first national championship.
Forty-plus years of history, between two leaders separated by one year in age.
Now, just one monumental game stands between the two and reaching the Final Four in San Antonio.
But no matter the result, Sunday won’t sour the friendship that’s been built. It will only add to it.
“If we don’t win it, I hope he does,” Sampson said. “That’s how much I respect him.”
sports@thedailycougar.com
—
“Kelvin Sampson and Rick Barnes: Friends forever, rivals on Sunday” was originally posted on The Cougar