STARKVILLE — After a record season in which Mississippi state volleyball reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in the program’s history, coach Julie Darty Dennis was given a two-year contract extension, which would lock her through the end of the 2025 season.
Dennis joined Mississippi State in 2018 and the Bulldogs have improved a lot since then. They rose from 5-15 in 2020 to a record 25-5 with a mark of 16-2 SEC in 2021. Details of Dennis’ deal were not disclosed in a release, but a university spokesperson said Dennis and its staff received pay increases.
“I am super excited and grateful that (Athletic Director) John Cohen and the administration have confidence in me, and they want me to stay here and continue to build something special with our program,” Dennis said in a statement. “I think the historic run we’ve had this season was definitely a sign that things are going in the right direction. Now this is the fun part. We’re really going to see if we can keep this up and compete at the level that we are.” know what we’re capable of.”
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Dennis’s previous contract change went into effect in 2020 and ran through the end of 2023, with a base salary of $130,000, according to a public registry request. Based on that contract, she also earned several performance-related incentives.
For winning the SEC’s Coach of the Year award, Dennis earned a $5,000 bonus. She made $10,000 because Mississippi State finished in the top three of the conference standings. The 25 wins netted her another $5,000.
The initial contract terms called for an 8.3% raise for making the opening round of the NCAA tournament. The latest contract announced Monday includes an increase, although the exact amount is not immediately available.
“Julie has already taken Mississippi State volleyball to new heights and led us to the NCAA tournament last season,” Cohen said in a statement. “She has raised the bar for our program and we are excited about our future under Julie’s continued guidance.”
According to a publication, the contract changes for Mississippi state assistant coaches place the Bulldogs in the top five highest-paid staff in the SEC.
“I think it’s the people I employ that make this work,” Dennis said. “Especially for our team, I think the permanence and continuity of having assistant coaches for more than a year or two really helps with the trust and development and those relationships. can keep the neighborhood and keep this thing going.”