Men's assistant basketball coach Randall Dickey knows two things well: traveling and winning.
Before assisting Auburn with on-floor coaching, recruiting and game preparation last year, Dickey spent the past two decades coaching across the country.
"Coach Dickey is a veteran assistant who has been in the business for a long time," said coach Tony Barbee. "He brings a wealth of knowledge both from the coaching aspect and the recruiting side of it."
Dickey was a four-year letterman and three-year starter at Ouachita Baptist University, and he said he grew to enjoy his profession after taking a job as a seventh-grade coach.
"I think I just sort of gravitated toward it," Dickey said. "I grew up in the sport because of my family. My mother and father were both school teachers, and my father coached. That part of my occupation became enjoyable and fun."
After being an assistant and head coach at two Arkansas high schools in the '80s, Dickey made his college coaching debut in 1990 at Howard College in Texas as an assistant.
"Once I got to the college level, it became rewarding," Dickey said. "It's given me a chance to do a lot of things."
In 1993, Dickey made the jump to Oklahoma State, where he was hired as the administrative assistant and basketball operations director under coach Eddie Sutton.
The Cowboys compiled a 128-65 record during Dickey's tenure, making four postseason tournament appearances in five years, including the NCAA tournament in 1995, 1998 and 1999.
"Oklahoma State was the first school to win back-to-back national titles, so it creates an atmosphere that you kind of just feel," Dickey said.
Dickey moved west in 2000 after being hired by Washington State, where he helped bring talent to the Cougars bench.
"When I went to the Pac-10, we caught it on an extreme upswing," Dickey said. "In the two years I was there, I think we had 19 guys in the NBA draft."
With the 2004 season approaching, Dickey found himself coaching at the University of Texas at El Paso.
"UTEP brought a real difference because it was given credit toward changing the color barrier in intercollegiate athletics as far as basketball is concerned," Dickey said.
"They really support their school. I think that was something that made it really special to work there and be part of that because you always felt like it was just a matter of getting to the tournament because you had tradition on your side."
The Miners made a postseason tournament five times in Dickey's six seasons in El Paso, and a 2006 coaching change introduced Barbee to the program.
"I think the biggest thing that impressed me with Tony was his enthusiasm, his beliefs that he wanted to win big, his belief that we could do some special things and his confidence level," Dickey said.
After improving from 14 wins in Barbee's first year at UTEP to 26 wins and an NCAA tournament appearance in his last, Dickey said following Barbee to Auburn was an easy decision.
"I never did think twice about it," Dickey said. "I'm a Southern guy growing up in Arkansas. Being that, you can imagine the influence the SEC has had on our family."
Dickey's connection to Auburn dates back to 1999 while he was playing for Oklahoma State. The Cowboys fell to the Tigers in the second round of the NCAA tournament, and Dickey said he was impressed with Auburn's talent.
Dickey said he is excited to build Auburn's program back to national prominence. However, he hasn't forgotten how he reached where he is now.
"I'll always be part of the Eddie Sutton era and his network," Dickey said. "I think it always opened up a lot of different ways to teach the game and play the game and to prepare for the game."
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