John Stroud was destined to become an All-American basketball player.
He had no choice as he grew up on the dirt basketball courts of Union County.
His father, Johnny, a four-time all-state selection, led his high school in Macedonia to the state title in 1944. Stroud’s mother was a three-time all-state selection. His sister Diane also was an all-state player. So, basketball was and is in the family blood.
Stroud led his West Union High School basketball team to the Class B title in 1975. Named All-State and All-American, he became heavily recruited with over 100 college scholarship offers. Stroud’s final choices came down to Alabama, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, and Ole Miss.
Indiana University, led by their flamboyant coach Bobby Knight, was the top college program at that time. One of Knight’s longtime assistants, who had been with him at West Point and Indiana, was Bob Weltich. Weltich was named the head coach at Ole Miss after the Hoosiers won the national championship in 1976. Knight reached out to Stroud with a phone call urging him to sign with Ole Miss. “It was a pretty big deal getting a call from Bobby Knight,” Stroud said.
In his four years in Oxford, Stroud’s scoring average kept improving. He averaged 14.5 points per game his freshman year, followed by 18.1 the following season. His final two seasons, he led the Southeastern Conference in scoring as he averaged 26.3 his junior season and 25.2 his senior season. Stroud is still the leading career scorer in Ole Miss history — he scored 2,328 total points. Additionally, he is the third leading scorer in SEC history. Stroud scored 39 points in the opening round of the 1979 SEC tournament, which is the second most in history. He was named the SEC Athlete of the Year after his senior season. Stroud remarked, “I just had a knack for scoring.”
I have so many fond memories of my time at Ole Miss. We won our first postseason game in over 50 years and went to the second round of the NIT in 1980.
“I have so many fond memories of my time at Ole Miss. We won our first postseason game in over 50 years and went to the second round of the NIT in 1980,” Stroud said. Another highlight of his college career was holding the record for most points in a men’s game at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville. He scorched the Bulldogs for 42 points.
The Houston Rockets drafted Stroud with their first pick. “I still have several wonderful memories of playing in the NBA. I was able to experience playing in the Boston Garden against Larry Bird. Another great highlight was playing against the Lakers in the Forum,” Stroud said. He also experienced playing in the NBA Finals against the Celtics and Bird.
After playing pro ball in Spain for a year and a half, Stroud took a position at the University of Alabama. In 1985, he began coaching in New Albany and led the Bulldogs to back-to-back Class 3A state championships in 1986 and 1987. Stroud then took over the men’s program at East Mississippi Community College for two seasons. He led the Lions to their first state championship appearance in school history. Next, Stroud took over the men’s program at Millsaps College. Over 13 seasons, he posted a 204-131 record, winning three conference titles and making three NCAA Division III tournaments. His 1994-95 team advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 25-3 record.
Stroud purchased an insurance business in 2003 as he returned to New Albany. In 2004, he started coaching girls’ basketball there. He coached 13 years in his hometown before hanging up the coaching whistle. Stroud’s overall record was 248-131 as he won the Class 4A state title in 2011. His teams also made three state tournaments.
“The best part of returning home was coaching my two daughters, Caroline and Anna Francis,” Stroud said.
He is now a high school basketball official.
Stroud was honored recently by the University of Mississippi with the Excellence and Impact Award. The former Rebel has been honored by West Union High School and several Ole Miss halls of fame along with being an SEC Living Legend. He is a member of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and in 1989 was named the second most popular athlete in Mississippi history by the Clarion Ledger.
