New Mountaineer baseball coach Randy Mazey couldn’t believe his good fortune when he found himself offered the opportunity to build up a Mountaineer baseball program that is headed into the Big -12 Conference.
“When this opportunity came along and I saw what the vision was for the program it became a no-brainer,” Mazey said as he was officially introduced at the Coliseum Wednesday. “It’s something that I just wanted to do. I wanted to jump on board and see how far we can take this program.”
In the meantime, there is a lot of work to be done.
Plans are in the works to build a new stadium in Morgantown. In the meantime, WVU will play its Big-12 Conference home games in Charleston and perhaps Beckley at least next season.
Then there is the challenge of getting players to compete in one of the top conferences in college baseball.
“You’re talking about the best of the best,” Mazey said of the transition the current Mountaineer players will make between the Big East and the Big-12. "The game is the same. Baseball is baseball. As long as you have that underdog mentality and you are willing to compete, you’ll find a way to win."
“It’s going to be a huge difference but it’s going to be super, super exciting for our players and for the people of West Virginia to see Big-12 baseball come to town. It’s a really exciting brand of baseball and it’s something from a fans perspective that should be really exciting,” said Mazey.
Mazey is confident he can mix his recruiting ties he has made in the Big-12 along with the new relationships he can build in this region.
“Being the northern most team in the Big-12 is going to be attractive to some players who want to play against that type of competition,” Mazey said. “They can still stay somewhat close to home and their families can see them play.
“You look at Kentucky in the SEC—the northern most team,” Mazey pointed out. “Oregon and Oregon State are the same in the Pac-12 with the success they’ve had. Even Maryland in the ACC has great pitching numbers and they’ve had a good season. I think that is attractive for kids who want to play in the Big-12 but stay up here to do it. We have a chance to attract some very good players that way.”
Mazey left Morgantown immediately after his news conference Wednesday to catch up with the TCU team he serves as assistant coach. Mazey will stay on the TCU staff through the NCAA playoffs. The Horned Frogs will play UCLA in a best of three Super Regional tournament starting Friday in Los Angeles.
“My goals (for WVU) are simple,” Mazey said. "My vision for this program for future years in June is to be holding practices instead of news conferences. I am certainly excited for the challenges that lie ahead."
“I am looking forward to getting out in the community and in the state and in the bordering states,” Mazey said. “I am certain we can convince them that by playing at West Virginia they can play at the top level of college baseball.”
Mazey–who spent time hunting and fishing in the Cheat Lake area of Morgantown while growing up in nearby Johnstown, Pennsylvania—believes this is a destination job.
“All my experiences have been great and my career has been great to me,” Mazey said. "I’ve seen a lot of different places and I’ve lived a lot of different places. I’ve had a lot of success and I couldn’t be happier. I am really looking for a place to establish some roots and I’m hoping that will be here in Morgantown.”
Previous: The WVU athletic department has confirmed the hiring of Randy Mazey as the new head baseball coach.
Mazey is currently an assistant at TCU. TCU is preparing to play this weekend in an NCAA Super Regional at UCLA. The winner of that best of three series will play in the College World Series.
Mazey is a former head coach at Charleston Southern and at East Carolina. He will be formally introduced during a news conference today at 2 p.m. on the WVU campus.
We are delighted to welcome Randy into our Mountaineer family," said WVU Director of Athletics Oliver Luck in a statement released this morning. “He is a blue-collar guy whose father was a coal miner, and
he was raised in Johnstown, Pa. He understands the work ethic that all Mountaineers share, and in that regard he is one of us,"
“Randy is a down-to-earth person who has done a great job at TCU," Luck continued. "He knows our regional recruiting area, as well as the traditional Big 12 recruiting areas. He’s a pitching coach who understands the importance of pitching in a top-flight conference like the Big 12, and I know he will bring in an excellent group of assistant coaches. Randy is smart very well respected in the college baseball community and understands the challenges that we will face in the Big 12."
The 46-year old Mazey has spent over 20 years in a college baseball dugout as a head coach and as an assistant.
“I am extremely thankful to Oliver Luck and West Virginia University for giving me this opportunity,” Mazey said in the statement. “I am excited to be the head baseball coach at such a fine university and look forward to the journey into the Big 12 Conference and the challenge that lies ahead. I also look forward to becoming part of the Mountaineer family, and I am anxious to work with WVU’s administration, alumni, fans and the Morgantown community to take this baseball program to new levels.”
