With the conclusion of the 2024 college baseball approaching, Black College Nines takes its first look at the coaching carousel for HBCU baseball with updates on the latest coaching changes for the coming season and ones that took place before and during the season.
Recent coaching changes…
SMALL SCHOOL
Bluefield State University
Out – Head Coach Drew Bailey
In –
Bailey won a second national title as the head coach of Bluefield State, winning the Black College World Series in 2021 and this past season 2024. After winning his second national title in Montgomery, AL, Bailey announced he is leaving the program to coach at his alma mater, Concord University. One possible replacement is current assistant coach Chris Guzy, who has won two national titles as Drew Bailey’s assistant.
Florida Memorial University
Out – Head Coach Florentino Burgos
In –
The issue here seemed to be Florida Memorial’s shoestring baseball budget with Burgos resigning just days short of his team’s appearance in the 2024 Black College World Series. In a conference (the Sun Conference) that is annually rated as one of the top two conferences in the NAIA, Burgos was competing with limited financial support. The conference typically sends three to five teams to the national tournament every year and two or more are almost always ranked in the NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll. The athletic department expected the program to compete against budgets ranging from at least 10 to 20 times that Florida Memorial’s.
A possible replacement is current assistant coach Andre Payne who coached the Lions in the three games they played in the recently concluded Black College World Series.
Claflin University
Out – Head Coach Scott Nestor
In – Jaylan Bledsoe
Scott Nestor was announced as head coach of the Panthers program on August 18, 2022. He was replaced by Jaylan Bledsoe who took the reins joining the program in 2024. He played his collegiate baseball at Jackson State University and later accepted a position as the hitting coach/recruiting coordinator for Mississippi Valley State University where he spent two years working with head coach Milton Barney, who is presently the head coach at Miles College.
Clark Atlanta University
Out – Head Coach Kentaus “K.C.” Carter
In –
Interim coach Lorenzo Petersen replaced Carter who was let go during the middle part of this past 2024 season for undisclosed reasons after spending seven seasons at Clark Atlanta.
Oakwood University
Out – Head Coach Richard Hodnett
In –
Hodnett was in his second season as the baseball coach at Oakwood University. The 2023 season was the first time Oakwood fielded a baseball team in over a decade. A national search is on for the next head coach. Current assistant coaches Jalil Rudolph and Tim Dawkins are names being mentioned as replacements.
Xavier University of Louisiana (LA)
Out – Head Coach Adrian Holloway
In –
Xavier University athletics dismissed Holloway just four years into his tenure, after baseball was relaunched in 2021 following a 60+ year absence. The past three seasons, the team has been beset by injuries and supposedly the coaching staff was faced with a player revolt against the program. It is not known if the school has a timeline to find a new coach.
Dillard University
Out – Head Coach Trennis Grant
In – Interim Head Coach A. Rashad “Rod” White
Trennis Grant was officially hired as the first head baseball coach at Dillard University in the February of 2022. His first year, Dillard won the GCAC championship and went to the NAIA national tournament. After weeks of speculation, this past April, Grant resigned as head baseball coach. A. Rashad “Rod” White has been serving as the interim head coach of Dillard since then. After White took over the coaching duties, Dillard was 12-4 in the team’s last 16 ball games ending its season with a 20-27 record. Coach White seems to be a strong favorite to have the “interim” tag removed and named permanent head coach