UPDATED — Lampley named WCHS Head Football Coach

By Paul Keane

The Wayne County News

Former WCHS star running back Tracy "Pound" Lampley will now have a 
chance to try to recapture the success he enjoyed as a War Eagle player 
as the new head coach of the program.

On Monday afternoon, Lampley was named to replace Jack Hankins as the 
Head Football Coach at WCHS. The School Board voted 4-0 with one 
abstention during the brief meeting.

"It feels great," Lampley said when asked how taking over at his alma 
mater felt. "This is like a dream come true having the chance to lead 
young men through the same path that I traveled in high school."

The new head coach said he plans to hit the ground running, including 
visiting the school Tuesday morning.

"I want to come up there tomorrow and meet with the players, the staff 
and the administration," he said. "I just want to show them my plans for 
the program.

"I also need to get a good staff together because the Spring Game is 
scheduled for May 15 so we have a lot to do."

Lampley said he wants to return the War Eagles to the prominence the 
program enjoyed when he played at WCHS.

"I want us to be competitive and to restore some of the fire that we had 
back when I played there," he said. "I want to get people excited and 
start bringing back the tailgating, the jugs and the excitement to the 
program.

"I also want to get to the point where our opponents look at the 
schedule and fear the fact that Wayne County is on that schedule. We've 
got a lot of work to do in order to reach that level again, but it can 
be done."

A standout at Wayne County High School, Lampley played at USM from 
2009-2012. In November of last year, he was inducted into the M-Club 
Hall of Fame at USM.

After graduating from USM, he spent one year with the Edmonton Eskimos 
before embarking on his coaching career. He helped Laurel High School 
win a state title in 2014, staying on the staff from 2013-2016 before 
moving to Petal High School as wide receivers coach (2016-2019) and 
later Hinds Community College (wide receivers coach, 2019-2021). He then 
joined the staff at Ocean Springs High School in 2023, serving as the 
offensive coordinator during the 2025 season.

Perhaps the most versatile player in the history of Southern Miss 
football, he still owns a large swath of the Golden Eagles' record 
book. A four-year starter and letter winner, Lampley was a running back, 
wide receiver, punt returner and kick returner, amassing a total of 
4,498 all-purpose yards.

He played in 49 games in his four years in Hattiesburg, beginning his 
career as a running back in 2009 and quickly taking over punt and kick 
return duties as a true freshman. He set the school record for punt 
return yards in a game with 211 against Marshall, earning him his first 
Conference USA Special Teams Player of the Week Award.

That season, he became the first — and still the only — Golden Eagle 
in school history to score a rushing, receiving, punt return and kick 
return touchdown. His efforts earned him Conference USA All-Freshman 
Team honors and All C-USA honorable mention honors in 2009 as a punt 
returner and saw him also earn honorable mention honors from 
CollegeFootballNews.com and second team Freshman All-American honors 
from Phil Steele Publications and Rivals.com.

He continued to rack up all-purpose yards over the next three seasons, 
leading the team in punt returns each season while leading the 2012 team 
in kick returns and receptions. In 2011, he proved to be the deciding 
factor throughout the season as the Golden Eagles marched to a 12-2 
record, the Conference USA Championships and a victory in the Hawai'i 
Bowl. He recorded four games with 100-plus receiving yards, including 
his career-best six catches for 125 yards in the C-USA title game at 
Houston.

After leading Southern Miss in rushing, receiving and kick returns and 
scoring a total of two touchdowns, he was named the 2011 Conference USA 
Championship Game MVP. He was also selected to the All-C-USA first team 
as a punt returner and All-C-USA honorable mention team as a wide 
receiver.

He still owns three school records today, including most punt return 
touchdowns, longest kick return and best punt return average. He is 
still in the top five in total punt returns, total kick returns, kick 
return yards and all-pupose yards.

At WCHS, Lampley saw action as a freshman, helping the team to the 2005 
4A State Championship Game and leading the team to the 2006 4A State 
Championship during a perfect 15-0 season.

In his freshman campaign of 2005, he scored 42 points, rushed for 744 
yards on 101 carries and caught two passes for 18 yards in helping the 
team to a 4A State Runner-up finish.

During the 2006 season, he led the team in scoring with 104 potions, 
lead the squad in rushing with 1,340 yards on 174 carries and caught six 
passes for 83 yards in helping the War Eagles win the 4A crown. He 
earned First-Team All-District 5-4A honors that season.

In his junior season in 2007, he led the team in scoring with 110 
potions, led the team in rushing with 1,248 yards on 191 carries and 
caught 15 passes for 289 yards during a 7-3 showing. He again earned 
First-Team All-District 5-4A honors.

For his senior year in 2008, he led the team in scoring with 108 points, 
led the team in rushing with 1,162 yards on 133 carries and led the team 
in receiving with 34 catches on 445 yards during a 12-1 campaign. He was 
named the WDAM All-Area Offensive Player of the Year, earned First-Team 
All-State honors and was named the All-District Most Valuable Player 
while also being named to the first team for the 5-4A squad.

During his career at WCHS, he scored 354 points, rushed for 4,494 yards 
on 599 carries (an average of 7.5 yards per carry) and caught 57 passes 
for 835 yards. The rushing numbers are among the most for any player at 
WCHS, and it is believed to be the all-time record at the school.

He currently lives in Ocean Springs with his wife, LaKenya, and their 
three children — Morgan, Tracy II and Tate.