LSU Gold

Keith Richard Season 2023-24

LSU
Keith Richard
Title
Assistant Coach

Keith Richard is the only member of the LSU coaching staff that Trent Johnson didn’t coach in college, but the respect that Johnson and Richard have for each other was apparent from the day Johnson was hired as LSU’s head coach.

When Coach Johnson took to the podium on his first day as LSU basketball’s head man and asked to talk about possible assistants, Johnson left very little doubt that he wanted to hire Richard as one of his assistants. The two had a strong relationship while competing in the Western Athletic Conference, Johnson as head coach at Nevada, Richard as head coach at Louisiana Tech.

Richard enters his second year on the LSU staff after making significant contributions to the Southeastern Conference championship team in 2009. Not only does Richard know talent, but he is also heavily in scheduling for the Tigers, scouting future opponents and preparing the game report for the team.

Richard joined the LSU staff after 13 years at Louisiana Tech that began in the 1994-95 season when he served the first of four years as an assistant coach. He was named the head coach of the Bulldogs in 1999 where he compiled a 150-117 record through the 2006-07 season. His first team captured a Sun Belt conference regular season title in 1999 with a 19-9 record and 20 or more games in 2000 (21-8), 2002 (22-10) and 2006 (20-13). The 2002 and 2006 teams advanced to post-season play in the National Invitation Tournament.

Richard became known as a strong recruiter of state talent during his time at Tech, gathering such top recruits as Lonnie Cooper, Gerrod Henderson, Antonio Meeking and NCAA rebound champ, Paul Millsap, now playing in the NBA.

Prior to his time at Louisiana Tech, Richard spent five years as an assistant coach at Louisiana-Monroe, during which time the Warhawks won four Southland Conference titles.

Richard also spent three seasons at Marshall University, serving the first season as a volunteer coach followed by two seasons as an assistant coach. Before heading to Marshall, Richard spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Louisiana-Monroe.

Richard has two diplomas from ULM, receiving his bachelor’s degree in general business in 1982 and his master’s in guidance and counseling in 1986. Richard played basketball for ULM from 1978-82, starting as a junior and senior and helping led the Indians to its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 1982.

A native of Baton Rouge, La., Richard attended Redemptorist High School, where he was a three-year starter and earned first-team All-State honors as a junior and a senior. During his sophomore season, Redemptorist reached the semifinals of the state tournament before winning back-to-back state titles his junior and senior years. He was inducted into the Redemptorist High School Hall of Fame in 2004.

Richard and his wife Holly have three children: Luke (18), Lance (15) and Lexie (13).

The Richard File
Year at LSU: Second
Birth Date: Jan. 10, 1960
Age: 49
Hometown: Baton Rouge, La.
Wife: Holly
Children: Luke (18), Lance (15), Lexie (13)
College: Louisiana-Monroe, ’82 (BA), ’86 (Masters)

College Coaching Experience:
1986-86: Graduate Assistant Coach Louisiana-Monroe
1986-89: Assistant Coach Marshall
1989-94: Assistant Coach Louisiana-Monroe
1994-98: Assistant Coach Louisiana Tech
1998-07: Head Coach Louisiana Tech
May 2008- Assistant Coach LSU