Why is Wichita State successful at the D1 Level??

Coach has a great record. Looked at the roster, 2 kids from Illinois. Only 1 kid from the "warm" states. Most are from Midwest...ranging from CO to MO, thought I saw one from IN on there too. Looks like the coaching staff has done a great job to find the best talent available in that region. I would agree that coaching has a lot to do with it, but I think a lot should be said for the staff locating the best talent.

BB .. The coaching has alot to do with it. People want to play for a proven winner, You will get quality recruits telling someone you WILL be playing in the College world series all 4 years of your college life. Baseball players would and are proud to wear a T shirt that says " Wichita State Baseball " any one who knows the game kids and parents and coaches alike would take notice. Great for the ego.

The last time Wichita State went to the College World Series was in 1996.The program is not as strong as it use be.Still it is a good program.

KSBASEBALL04, good luck at Nebraska next year!!! It is also a pretty good program!! I think you will like it!! Work real hard, the competition is pretty hard!! Good Luck again!!!

hitNrun, I have to agree with you!! Although, some people don't like when a coach stays around forever, I do!! Gene Stephenson, has been the foundation of a great Shocker program for a long time and every year I expect him to say he is done and will be heading up to the Bigs!! The fact that he hasn't moved up yet is a really big recruiting tool and his dedication to the shockers is something that a lot of midwest kids think about when they think of D1 Baseball!!!

BB...Whatever happened to that lawsuit against WS and Ben Christiansen for hitting Molina?

Is it done?

Beenthere, ya know, I was just thinking about that as I was posting this!! I am going to check that out right now, that was pretty strange!!

It was settled out of court.Ben is from the same High school as my son.

Yeah I think it is pretty much like KSBASEBALL04 states, the 10th circuit court of appeals basically dimissed it after it was settled out of court.

one of the very best teams in the nation for a long time.few schools can boast such a long standing tradition of winning college baseball.

Where is James Peterson(sp?)now?

That is a good question, I know that he ended up going to WS and then really haven't heard too much about him. I know that he was such a stud that maybe when he got down there it was hard for him to take a back seat to anyone!! If you find out let me know, I would like to know what happened as well!! Could have changed mind to a juco, who knows!! He was a good ball player!!

The one key thing that WSU has in common with the other top 25 D1 programs that you see year in year out is...development. They do a good job of recruiting talent, and not always the top ranked HS kids every year. It's what they do with that talent for four years...development. They flat out develop players. I played against them in college and every year they seemed to produce a player from mediocracy to a top player in the country, not just the conference. I give big credit to the coaching staff!!!

BB, I'll be seeing you soon here in sunny AZ. Has the weather lightened up yet?

MLB22, not yet the weather is still bad here!! As you can tell, I am doing my part of the project!! Seems as if some posters are trying to focus on just one part of the country when I assume the scope is much larger!!!! Thanks MLB, can't wait to see ya!!

BB .. keep up the good work .. nice to hear from you, and keep letting us know, how things go your way .Im a Chicagoan, but nice to hear about shocker baseball. Youve added some nice post's here.

hear a big strong kid and a good player from mt carmel hs in chicago name brian spears . got a full ride .between baseball and grades.

Simple....NO Football and BAD basketball.