Marcus Belcher begins his second season on staff under Ray Harper after joining the Gamecock program prior to the 2022-23 season.
In his first season in Jacksonville, the Gamecocks finished 13-18 overall after replacing all five starters from its NCAA Tournament team the season prior. Following its championship run the season before, JSU took everyone’s best shot in its final trip through the ASUN Conference before joining Conference USA in 2023-24.
Belcher arrived at Jax State from Illinois State where he recently served three seasons as an assistant for the Redbirds. The Mexico, Missouri, native, is no stranger to the challenging Missouri Valley, prior to his stint in Normal, Ill., he spent eight seasons as an assistant at Indiana State. He served as the associate head coach for the Sycamores his final two seasons. During his time at ISU he coached 11 All-MVC honorees, including two-time first team selection Jake Odum and 2015 MVC Freshman of the Year, Brenton Scott.
He began his coaching career in 2004 as an assistant at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. The Cougars made it to the Elite 8 of the NCAA DII Tournament in 2006. Belcher later made stops at Eastern Illinois (2007-08) and Evansville (2008-09), before beginning a two-year tenure at his alma mater of Southern Illinois (2009-11).
Belcher was the starting point guard on the 2002 Southern Illinois Sweet 16 squad that went 28-8 and won the MVC Co-Championship. He later earned his master's degree in sport management from SIU Edwardsville in 2006. He and his wife Vanessa have a son named Sebastian.
Updated: May 2023
