Considering the depth and breadth of experience on this site, i thought it would be interesting to get feedback on who you consider to be very good HC's at these levels across the country and why. W/L's, the way they run the program, character, game management, recruiting, whatever...
Let's keep it positive and not let this slide into a "worst" thread, please.
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I don't know a lot about him, but Jamie Shevchik of Keystone seems to win in D3 and he coaches the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape League. Brewster won the Cape in 2017, so he has that going for him.
Ed Flaherty, Southern Maine
https://www.southernmainehuski...Flaherty_Ed?view=bio
Matt Noone, Babson
http://www.babsonathletics.com...matt00.html?view=bio
John Casey, Tufts (I’m aware someone here son had issues with Casey)
http://www.gotuftsjumbos.com/s...hes/j_casey?view=bio
Eric Podbelski, Wheaton (MA)
https://athletics.wheatoncolle...c_podbelski?view=bio
Will Sanborn, Saint Joseph’s (ME)
https://www.gomonks.com/sports...hes/Sanborn?view=bio
'Best' for what? Winning? Hitting? Pitching? Kids like? Getting drafted?
Dan Spain at (NAIA) Clarke University in Iowa is highly thought of...
D III, John Harvell at Christopher Newport University. Both of our sons played for him, thoroughly enjoyed their experiences, very successful program (currently ranked in top 3), and Coach Harvell still stays in touch after all these years. Ray Hedrick at Randolph Macon College is another D III top notch coach and individual, very successful program.
Agree with Hokieone on John Harvell at CNU. I'll add Ray Hedrick at Randolph-Macon in Ashland, VA. I know many players (and their families) who have played for these guys, and been successful. Alumni stay active. and engaged which is a great sign.
SultanofSwat posted:'Best' for what? Winning? Hitting? Pitching? Kids like? Getting drafted?
You pick. Like I said, W/L's, the way they run the program, character, game management, recruiting, whatever... I think any feedback on "why" would be great as well.
Cool, keep 'em coming... thought this could be helpful and interesting in a lot of ways...
-A resource for parents/players targeting non-D1 schools and not knowing where to start. Most D1 schools have plenty of info in the media while other classifications, often not so much.
-Insight into what people value in college coaches.
-Target list/learning tool for aspiring coaches.
-Tip of the cap to where good things are happening in college baseball.
Matt Parrington, Macalester HC. Excellent BB coach, excellent person. Because he is coaching at a HA school playing in a conference with a mix of schools(not just HA like a NESCAC) then he can't always win, but he usually gets his team to be competitive. My son did not play for him, and chose another school, but likely would've chosen Macalester if baseball was his only concern.
I'm one of those parents of a D3 player who has elected not to identify my son and where he plays publicly. So without naming names, except for recruiting and results, which speak for themselves, and game management, which I can observe and pass judgement on like anyone else, and I do, pretty much everything I know about my son's college coach I only know second hand, through the prism of my son's experience and retelling of events.
That said, the things I appreciate most about my son's coach are his communication skills, his support, and his ability to correctly prioritize the meaning of baseball at a high academic college. Coach texts and emails his players constantly, as a group and individually, and my son has shared a few with me. For example, his welcome letter to his incoming freshman was a classic in which he introduced the group to each other as future lifelong friends and wrote really eloquently about his expectations and the meaning of their efforts to excel on and off the field. Individually, he's been understanding as my son has struggled with health issues this season and he's mustered a significant amount of medical resources to help him. As for the prioritization - my son came from a successful HS program run by a guy who was a real hardass, so he was used to that, and used to winning. I don't want to put words into his mouth, but I think at some point during a frustrating freshman baseball season, he was wondering if his team didn't need need a coach would have his players running poles early on Sunday morning after a DH loss on Saturday. What he learned is that his college coach feels that grinding players down to get wins isn't worth it in that environment. He wants his team to succeed on talent and hard work, not on fear of getting yelled at and running poles when they lose, and he thinks that the players are already subject to a tremendous amount of stress due to their intense academic workload, and doesn't want to add to it.
That may not be appropriate for every college or every level, but I think it is for this one, and it's in keeping with a general theme of his that the players are men now who need to learn to take care of their own business, not be constantly told what to do by adults. The results are a work in progress but they are trending in the right direction.
Have never met him but have to throw out Chris Hanks (HC), Colorado Mesa (DII). Annually one of the best DII programs in the country. Must be doing something right to have had continued success over the past 10 years.
That "future lifelong friends" thing is totally correct-both sons' weddings featured 60% CNU teammates. They get thick and stay thick, a very neat thing. The CNU guys to this day continue to play each other in their fantasy leagues started many years ago. Very cool. And once they all hit campus, they bond almost instantly. Just one of the many joys of college baseball.
I meant to elaborate on why Dan Spain at Clarke is highly thought of:
He really develops players. Doesn't over-recruit. He is a no nonsense, motivator type coach who can really teach the game. I had an opportunity to talk with him once (in my former capacity as a coach, not relating to my son) and he said he likes to find players who are D1 type talent who for whatever reason didn't get recruited to D1 who "fell through the cracks". Said he likes kids who play with a bit of a chip on their shoulder.
In the offseason he helps with instruction in former MLB catcher Eric Munson's travel program. I've heard from parents that he's a great instructor. I've also heard from current & former Clarke players that they learned more in one season with Spain then they ever did anywhere else.
