Orin Bailey Jr. joined the University of South Alabama men’s basketball staff in May 2022 and has contributed significantly to the program’s continued rise in the Sun Belt Conference. During his tenure, the Jaguars captured the 2024–25 Sun Belt regular-season championship — the program’s first since 2008 — after being projected to finish 11th in the preseason poll. South Alabama posted a 21–11 overall record that season, its most regular-season wins since 2008, while earning four victories over NCAA NET top-150 opponents. The Jaguars emerged as one of the nation’s premier defensive teams, ranking among the national leaders in field-goal percentage defense, scoring defense, steals per game, turnover margin, and assist-to-turnover ratio.
Bailey has played a key role in player development and recruiting. He helped mentor forward Samuel Tabe, a 1,000-point scorer who earned Sun Belt Player of the Week honors after a 35-point performance against Arkansas State, and guard Julian Margrave, who ranked among the conference leaders in three-point shooting. In 2022–23, Bailey assisted in recruiting and developing Kevin Samuel, who was named Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year — the first Jaguar to earn the honor since its inception. Prior to South Alabama, Bailey spent the 2021–22 season at Florida Gulf Coast, helping the Eagles win 22 games and secure a postseason berth. With more than 15 years of coaching experience, including extensive youth program leadership in Houston and a head coaching stint in the International Basketball League, Bailey is widely respected as both a teacher of the game and an evaluator of talent.
