28 and Counting: Meet College Basketball’s Oldest Player
by Danny Kinard
in News
(Courtesy of Rayford Albright)
For years, Rayford Albright was afraid to be asked how his basketball career was going.
He was ashamed to admit that it had reached a humiliating stage.
Albright was once known in Memphis high school basketball circles for his flashy handle and his ability to put up points, but the slippery 5-foot-9 guard faced a turbulent transition to the college level. He bounced between four schools in four years, with his senior season at Martin Methodist College ended prematurely in 2019 when he was declared academically ineligible.
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Without a college degree and no offer to play pro basketball, Albright returned home to Memphis and collapsed on his mother’s couch. He took a job as a valet parking attendant at the historic Peabody Hotel, while also trying to make some extra money by coaching his neighborhood kids or working as an assistant coach at his former high school.
“That was a dark period for me,” Albright told Yahoo Sports. “My life always revolved around basketball, so it was very hard without basketball. I felt embarrassed to go out in public. “People would ask me about basketball and I wouldn’t have an answer.”
The turning point for Albright came about a year ago when he reunited with former University of Memphis star Andre Turner. Turner, who had coached both of Albright’s younger brothers in high school, had since accepted the head coaching job at Division II Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee.
While they were talking, Turner remembers Albright admitted that she felt “a little lost.” By then, Albright was the father of a one-year-old boy. He wanted to be able to provide more financial support to his son’s mother, but he had no plan for how to do so.
Turner asked Albright if he had any college eligibility remaining. Albright said he might have another year, but he wasn’t sure. In his junior year, Albright did not enroll at Talladega College until the beginning of the spring semester. Then his academic issues halted his senior season at Martin Methodist in December.
It was then that Turner began to consider a bold idea to help Albright find her way in life. Lane College coaches began exploring the possibility of offering a full ride to the 28-year-old valet parking attendant who had not played competitive basketball in more than three years.
“My agreement from the beginning was that we would do everything by the book,” Turner told Yahoo Sports. “We had to go to all the places he went and get transcripts from each of those places. There were no promises. It was kind of like let’s see where this takes us.”
Where this has taken Albright is virtually uncharted territory. Albright, born July 5, 1995, appears to be the oldest active college basketball player.
The oldest player to appear in a Division I game this season is BYU’s Spencer Johnson, a 26-year-old licensed realtor. Fairfield’s Alexis Yetna is 27 days older than Johnson, but has yet to log a minute this season due to injury.
Albright is more than two full years older than Johnson or Yetna. He appears to be more than a full year older than any Division II, Division III or NAIA college basketball player. A study conducted last month by Medium’s Liam Hanley did not find any other non-Division I players born before August 7, 1996.
Asked what it meant to Lane to be nearly a decade older than some of his college teammates, Albright downplayed the age difference and described himself as a “big brother” to some of the younger players. Albright lives off campus in an apartment with some upperclassmen. He says the only time he feels old is when his muscles ache or stiffen after a hard practice or pickup game.
“When I finished playing basketball, I wanted to play it again,” Albright said. “Now if I get a good run, the day is over.”
When Albright graduated from Manassas High School in June 2014, LeBron James still played for the Miami Heat, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West were newly married and Bill Cosby was still a beloved comedian. In those days, Albright was a small but dynamic all-state guard who was accustomed to sinking shots early and often and putting his high school team on his back.
“He was like a one-man band in high school,” Turner recalled. “That’s what his coach wanted from him. If Rayford didn’t do his job, he was probably going to get beat pretty badly.
Albright intended to continue his basketball career at junior college power Walters State, but a moment of immaturity derailed those plans. He said he was caught shoplifting at Walmart the summer before his freshman year, a decision he now regrets.
“I think I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in,” Albright said. “Walters State gets a lot of exposure. They have Division I coaches in the gym when they’re practicing. If you play well there, you’ll go to Division I.”
After taking a year off from school and basketball, Albright resumed his career playing his high school style. He was more bucket getter than facilitator, scoring 19.5 points per game as a freshman at Dyersburg State Community College and averaging double figures in double figures every collegiate season thereafter.
Those gun-toting habits were hard to break as the 28-year-old was asked to take on a different role for Lane College. Turner has other players who can score, players who haven’t been a few months removed from basketball after a three-year hiatus. The third-year coach views Albright not as a primary option but as a change of pace off the bench.
“He’s addicted to scoring and shooting,” Turner said. “That’s what he’s doing. Now at this stage, I want something different.
“His agility and speed are still there. He can create problems for our opponents. But it’s about Ray buying into that role with the team rather than getting into the game and shooting, shooting, shooting.
Of course, whether Albright is able to earn playing time the rest of the season is not the primary measure of his success. This year is all about completing his graduate degree, setting himself up for life after basketball, and being a good example for his son.
“I never had a Plan B,” Albright said. “That’s where I’ve always gone wrong.”
Four years ago, Albright was embarrassed that his playing days didn’t end on his terms. Now, college basketball’s oldest player is enjoying his last dance and looking forward to a career in coaching when it’s over.
