COACHING STAFF

Head Coach Daron Schoenrock

The 16th baseball coach in school history, Daron Schoenrock enters his 10th season at the controls of Memphis baseball armed with a club featuring both experienced players and a talented group of newcomers. One of the top head coaches in the business, Schoenrock led his 2013 team to the program's seventh 30-win season and second straight since joining Conference USA in 1995.

The 2013 C-USA Coach of the Year led the Tigers to its best winning percentage (.593) since 1994 with a 35-24 record, which included five wins over top-25 teams (Ole Miss, Rice and Houston).

The Tigers pitching was superb for Memphis in 2013, and the results proved it. The U of M claimed C-USA Pitcher of the Year honors with junior Erik Schoenrock getting the nod while junior Sam Moll was also named to the league's first team. Junior reliever Jonathan Van Eaton claimed C-USA second team accolades after breaking a school single-season record with 13 saves on the year. The Memphis hurlers combined for a 3.05 ERA during the season for the fourth-best mark in the Tigers history, and the best since 1976. Off the mound, the Tigers were just as impressive, posting a .970 fielding percentage, third-best in program history.

Memphis also racked up a C-USA All-Freshman Team selection with Jake Little becoming the firstTiger since 2009 to be named to the team.

Off the field, the Tigers had a league-best four players named to the conference's all-academic team with Moll, Ethan Gross, Tucker Tubbs and Zach Willis earning the distinction.

In 2012, The Tigers won 12-of-15 games down the stretch to take momentum into the C-USA Tournament. Memphis went 2-2 in the tournament, ending the season in the C-USA Championship game, but along the way, the Tigers earned a series win on the road over a top-10 opponent (UCF) for only the second time in program history.

For the second-straight season, Memphis was home to the C-USA Player of the Year with third baseman Jacob Wilson taking the honors. Overall, Schoenrock saw the program lay claim to three first team All-C-USA players, one second team selection and three players on the All-Academic Team.

With Schoenrock at the helm of the Memphis program, the Tigers were able to end the 13-year postseason hiatus and earn a berth to the NCAA Tournament in 2007. The 2007 team went 36-27, marking the most wins since 1994 and, combined with the 2006 campaign, represented the first back-to-back winning seasons since 1994 and 1995. Since coming to Memphis, Schoenrock has brought in three nationally-ranked recruiting classes, while 11 Tigers have been drafted in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Twelve players have gone on to play professional baseball either through the draft or free agency.

Associate Head Coach Russ McNickle

With more than 25 years of collegiate coaching experience, Russ McNickle was named the new associate head coach and pitchers/catchers coach for the Tigers in July 2013.

ncluded in his 25 years at the collegiate ranks, McNickle has spent seven years as a head coach. A five-year tenure at Saint Leo University (Division II) and Meridan Community College (NJCAA) comprise McNickle's head coaching experience. McNickle stepped down from Saint Leo after the 2012 season to pursue a scouting job with the San Diego Padres, which he has held since.

At Saint Leo, McNickle recruited and developed three Sunshine State Conference Freshmen of the Year over a four-year period. Prior to his tenure at Saint Leo, McNickle was the pitching coach at Mississippi State from 2005-08, helping the Bulldogs to a SEC Tournament title in 2005 and the 2007 College World Series. McNickle began at Mississippi State in 2002 and crossed paths with Coach Schoenrock in the 2002-04 seasons. Schoenrock was the pitching coach for the Bulldogs while McNickle oversaw the catchers and hitters.

The Mobile, Ala., native began his coaching career as a graduate assistant coach on Ron Polk's staff at Mississippi State University in 1989 and 1990. The Bulldogs advanced to NCAA tournament competition both seasons, claiming the 1989 SEC regular season title. In 1990, the Bulldogs won a share of the SEC Tournament championship before advancing to the NCAA College World Series in Omaha.

McNickle coached the next 10 seasons in the Sunshine State. He coached pitchers and catchers during a two-year stint (1991-92) as an assistant to Dr. Roger Martinsen at Central Florida Community College in Ocala, Fla. In 1993 he joined the staff of ABCA Hall of Famer Chuck Anderson as an assistant coach at Florida Southern College. During a six-year term (1993-1998) at the NCAA Division II school in Lakeland, Fla., McNickle helped direct the Moccasins to a 265-84 mark, five NCAA postseason appearances, three Sunshine State Conference titles and a pair of berths in the NCAA Division II College World Series. Florida Southern won the national title at the 1995 CWS in Montgomery, Ala., after claiming runner-up honors in 1994. Fifteen FSC players earned All-American status, two earned ABCA National Player of the Year honors, and 28 players were selected in the Major League Baseball draft.

His coaching career continued at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla., the next two seasons (1999-2000), where he served as pitching coach and top assistant under coach Eddie Cardieri. Following the 2000 campaign, McNickle returned to Mississippi, this time as head coach at Meridian Community College. His 2001 MCC Eagles club posted a 38-16 record and claimed the Miss-Lou Conference championship.

He is married to the former Robin Elliott of Houma, La., and the couple has a son, Trey, and daughter, Jordan. Trey is currently a junior pitcher at South Carolina.

Assistant Coach Clay Greene

Clay Greene begins his third season as assistant coach/recruiting coordinator at the University of Memphis. Greene joined head coach Daron Schoenrock after six seasons at East Tennessee State University.

Last season, the Tigers switched to the Axe bat, which helped the offense to a .266 batting average with 505 hits that included 86 doubles along with a .357 on base percentage and a .356 slugging mark. In the Tigers' second conference game, the Memphis offense recorded the fifth-biggest shutout win in program history with a 16-0 victory over Tulane.

In 2013, Greene guided freshman Jake Little to the Conference USA All-Freshman Team honors, the first Tiger to receive the accolade since 2009.

In his first season at Memphis, Greene coached C-USA Player of the Year Jacob Wilson and a Tigers offense that produced 106 doubles and 41 homers. The club hit .289 and slugged .409, while reaching base at a .374 clip.

Assistant Coach Lee Parks

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