Meet Samantha Ricketts
Dispatch sports reporter Theo DeRosa sat down with Ricketts shortly after the Bulldogs’ 2022 season began.
The team talks about “the Ricketts effect” a lot. To you, what is “the Ricketts effect,” and what impact do you hope to leave on this program here at MSU?
My biggest goal is just that we’re using softball to teach these girls lessons to set them up for success when they leave here. It’s so much bigger than softball. It’s, ‘Can I be a positive influence in their lives and help teach them the skills that they’re going to need to go off and be successful outside of the sport?’ That’s really what drives me: being able to be that presence for them and help teach them how to stand on their own two feet and using the game of softball to teach those lessons. It changes every year. Every team’s dynamic is different. We’re just finding ways to reach them and let them know that they have people in their corner. We’ve got kids from all types of backgrounds — some with much tougher stories than others. To bring them all together every year, it’s just truly caring about your players and making sure they know that they’re loved and they have people in their corner and let them flourish at the same time while doing so.
It’s your third season here as the head coach at Mississippi State. How would you evaluate your job so far — in on-field results and as a leader of these players?
I think we’re on track with what our goals are. I think a big part of what our staff is doing starts with recruiting, and recruiting is really half of our job: getting the right kids here. I feel really good about that, about the players we have coming in the next few years. I know the staff has really worked hard at that. We’ve learned a lot of lessons. I think that’s what I’m most proud of, that we don’t stay stagnant or do things because that’s how they’ve always been done. We’re going to push the envelope. We’re going to use more of the technology and evaluate ourselves to make sure what we’re doing is actually beneficial — testing what we’re doing in the weight room at practice, getting some objective data. I think we’re on the right track, and I think we’re building a culture of kids who want to leave a mark. They want to take Mississippi State softball to a level it’s never been before. They’re now starting to kind of speak that language, too, which is really the hope — that it’s not just coming out of my mouth but out of theirs. I think I’m starting to hear a shift in their leadership as well, which makes me feel like we’re on the right track, and I’m excited to see what we can do in the next couple of years.
You’re playing in a tough league in the SEC. How long might it take to get to that point — to help make Mississippi State one of the SEC’s top teams and a perennial NCAA Regional host like you guys are hoping to do?
I don’t know if I could put a timeline on it. It could be this year; it could be the next; it could be a couple years. It just really depends on the schedule that you draw, especially when it comes to conference. We’ve got another tough draw this season. For us right now, obviously the goal is always going in to compete and win the SEC, but we’re trying to move up the ladder, move up the ranks and find our way to the top half right now. I think that’s the focus — and understanding that we can reach our goals. Even if we don’t host a regional this year doesn’t mean that you can’t win a regional game. Just getting them to understand that the season doesn’t come down to one game, but it’s the process and the work it takes to get there. If we’re working with the intent to host a regional every year and we fall short of that but we feel good about our work ethic, then we can evaluate ourselves that way. That’s really the big thing: getting them to shift that focus to not just the one game at the end of the year that makes or breaks our season but, ‘What are you doing in January and February to set yourself up to be successful when you do reach May?’
You had such a great career at Oklahoma. What was it like playing for a program with that kind of historical success and softball tradition?
It was an honor. My path to get to Oklahoma wasn’t the typical recruiting story, and that helped me really just be thankful for the opportunity. I ended up at OU because another catcher didn’t make grades. I got in there, I was not a highly recruited player, and I wanted to prove myself. I think that’s kind of been how I’ve gone through my softball career and coaching career ever since — working harder and proving that I belong to prove people wrong. I think it’s the same with the Mississippi State way: It’s just blue collar, and people are going to count you out. That’s always kind of been the way that I’ve been through this. To just be able to play for such a legendary coach like Coach (Patty) Gasso and to have her in my corner and really kind of show me the ropes — even before I got into coaching, as a player, she just started to teach me what the other side of it looked like. I’m very grateful for that and the fact that she’s someone I can still call. She’s such a great mentor and spiritual leader and somebody who’s really helped raise me and then brought in my sister (Keilani). The big family atmosphere there is something that we try to instill here as well.
How did you get hired at Mississippi State in 2014, and what was it like taking over as head coach in 2019?
I stayed (at Oklahoma) for two years as a graduate assistant, so I got to help out on the coaching staff while my sister played. From there, I got my first coaching job at Wichita State. I spent three years at Wichita State. It was about two hours north of Norman, so still pretty close. And then I got the phone call from (head coach) Vann (Stuedeman) to come down and be her hitting coach at Mississippi State. Again, it was another opportunity to challenge myself. It was the SEC, and you get to go against the best of the best every weekend. It was just such a great opportunity that I couldn’t pass up on it. The goal was always to be a head coach. I just didn’t expect it to work out the way it did. When the opportunity arose and I got to interview for the head coaching job, again, I had Coach Gasso in my corner. I had the right people leading me and preparing me for this path. To get the start of my head coaching career in the SEC is obviously a huge undertaking. I just look at it as such a huge blessing and something to be grateful for every single day and really go out there and just continue to approach it the way I did as a player: go prove people wrong and work hard with kind of a chip-on-your-shoulder, blue-collar approach.
How important is it to grow softball and women’s sports at Mississippi State, and what barriers stand in your way when it comes to doing that?
I think there is a big interest in and support for women’s athletics. I think everybody saw what Vic Schaefer and women’s basketball have done at Mississippi State. The Bulldogs fans, they want to support athletics, and they want to support the women. Really, it’s just putting out a consistent product and giving them something to be excited about. I think a big part is they want that family feel. It’s hard to explain to people until they actually get here and experience it. I think it’s just the small-town feel. It’s something (athletic director) John Cohen talks about a lot: The smaller the town, the bigger your circle. You know everyone, and it’s hard not to bump into people you know. They want to come out. They want to support. They feel like you’re part of the community, all the players. They see my girls out at a restaurant or out at the grocery store. I think that’s what really makes it special: just the community and the support they’ve all been through with every sport. For us, it’s just continuing to get people in the stands. The approach we’re taking is we want our girls to get to know the fans. We want them to build that relationship so that we can continue to get that support at the games and help grow the fanbase by interacting with them.
INTERVIEW BY THEO DEROSA
PHOTO COURTESY MSU ATHLETICS
