Advance native, TRC alum Lane Below named head coach at Gulf Coast State

PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Ten years ago, Lane Below was named the Southeast Missourian Player of the Year in boys basketball and helped the Advance Hornets make it to the Class 2 quarterfinals.

Wednesday, Below got his first head coaching job in the college ranks when he was named the coach at Gulf Coast State College in Panama City.

The Commodores compete in NJCAA Region 8, one of the nation's top junior college hotbeds, and are also members of the Panhandle Conference, which includes national powers like Northwest Florida State and Chipola, where Below was an assistant coach for the last two seasons.

Below is understandably excited to take the helm of the Commodores' program.

“I have been working for an opportunity like this for a while and I am ready to get to work,” Below said. “The Panhandle Conference is extremely tough. Last year's Region 8 tournament had eight teams in it and six were top 25, so the competition is as good as you will find at the junior college level.”

Gulf Coast State won the Region 8 championship in 2020, but was denied a trip to the national tournament when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since then, the Commodores have a record of 54-53, including a 17-13 record this past season.

Below said he wants to bring a blue-collar mentality to Gulf Coast State.

“I want guys that are tough and will give me everything they have every day,” Below said. “I want to be able to impact all these players lives in a positive way. Getting their degree is the main focus and basketball will be second. I am going to push them to the limits every single day and hold them accountable every single day. I am looking forward to building my team.”

That blue-collar mentality should come as no surprise to those who watched Below play at Advance High from 2010-14.

“My time at Advance grew my love for the game,” Below said. “Playing basketball with your childhood best friends is something I think about a lot. I played for a hard-nosed coach, Bubba Wheetley, who pushed us every single day.”

After graduating Advance, Below followed his grandfather (Bill Morgan) and uncle (Jason Below) to Three Rivers College, where he played for Hall of Fame coach Gene Bess.

“(I) learned so much in two years,” Below said. “Gene Bess was not only a great coach, but a great man and I am appreciative of the opportunity he gave me.”

Below finished his playing career at Ole Miss in the Southeastern Conference, one of the nation's top college conferences, joining TRC teammates Justas Furmanavičius and Jake Coddington.

“My time at Ole Miss was huge in my development as a coach because you are playing against NBA players and final four coaches every night in the SEC,” Below said. “(Head coach) Andy Kennedy, who I played for, gave me an opportunity as a player that I knew would open up more coaching opportunities for me.”

After finishing his playing career at Ole Miss, Below became a graduate assistant coach with the Rebels and worked with head coach Kermit Davis, who was named the SEC Coach of the Year during Below's time as an assistant.

“Coach Davis lives about 25 minutes away from Gulf Coast, so it will be cool to have him come to some practices and games,” Below said. “

Below later was an assistant coach at Mississippi Gulf Coast under Tim Ryan, who has won a national title and is in the Florida Hall of Fame, before heading to Chipola College in Marianna, Florida in 2022, where he coached under Donnie Tyndall.

“I have learned a ton from Coach DT,” Below said. “We had a lot of success together going 58-10 over two seasons with two Panhandle Conference titles and one state title. We also had two sweet 16 appearances at the national tournament.”

But even in Florida, Below gives major credit to his Southeast Missouri roots and his wife, Dexter native Hannah (Noe) Below.

“I’d like to thank my wife Hannah and daughter Collins for being by my side in this coaching world,” Below said. “Thank you to all my family and friends back home that have supported me.”