STARKVILLE — Will Coggin didn’t want to get ahead of himself.
But when Coggin heard Nick Mingione was named the new head baseball coach at Kentucky, he thought Mingione’s good fortune could help him. Mingione served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Mississippi State baseball team. As a volunteer assistant and coordinator of camps, Coggin thought coach John Cohen might promote him.
“Being a coach, I feel like one thing you have to have is confidence in yourself,” Coggin said. “You have to have confidence in your ability, your work ethic and your determination to be able to get the job done. It crossed my mind, but I didn’t really expect it to become a reality that fast.”
Coggin’s confidence paid off when Cohen promoted him to a full-time assistant and recruiting coordinator. Getting Coggin to this point has been in the works for the last few years.
After playing for the Bulldogs for two seasons (2007 and 2008), Coggin joined Cohen’s staff when he took over at MSU in 2009. He spent four years at his alma mater, but Cohen wanted Coggin to get out of his comfort zone, so Cohen sent Coggin to St. Johns River (Fla.) State College to work with someone he trusted: coach Ross Jones.
“When it comes to the SEC, coaching three years of junior college baseball ought to be prerequisite,” Jones said. “It teaches you how to be simple about things. It teaches you some patience and some humility.”
Jones didn’t coddle Coggin and gave him free range with a lot of the aspects of the program. Being in charge for the first time was a learning experience for Coggin.
“Being a young coach, you’re going to make some mistakes, but I feel like he stepped aside, let me coach, let me work with our hitters, and let me be in charge of recruiting,” Coggin said. “That helped me grow up as a coach and helped me figure out what I did and didn’t like and what worked and what didn’t work. He let me learn from my mistakes.”
Coggin spent three years with the Vikings. During that time, the Vikings went 122-42. In 2015, Coggin was instrumental in St. Johns winning a school-record 47 games.
Jones, who coached with Cohen under Pat McMahon at Florida, called Coggin “tireless” and “relentless.” He gave Coggin a lot of credit for the program’s success the last three seasons.
“It was fun to watch Will grow as a coach,” Jones said. “As a young coach, sometimes you overwork yourself and you don’t understand you can do things and be a little bit more efficient. You’ve got to learn what’s really important and what’s not. It was fun to watch Will mature as a young coach.”
There is no question in Jones’ mind Coggin will make MSU better, especially offensively. It was evident this past season, as MSU led the SEC in doubles (132), was second in batting average (.308), and fifth in home runs (47). MSU hit .271 (ninth in the SEC) in 2015. The offensive turnaround helped MSU win the Southeastern Conference regular-season title for the first time since 1989.
Coggin, who played for Northeast Mississippi Community College from 2005-06, helped develop Nathaniel Lowe at St. Johns. Lowe transferred to MSU from Mercer and was a force in his only year in the junior college ranks. That translated well at MSU, where he led the Bulldogs with 86 hits and 20 doubles this season. Lowe signed with the Tampa Bay Rays after being taken in the 13th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player draft.
Jones said Coggin’s preparation makes him one of the best young offensive coaches in the country.
“He does it with video, drill work, and with live work,” Jones said. “He is understanding of what a player is capable of doing, what he’s not capable of doing, creating a swing for him that works for him, and teaching the best chance to be successful.”
Mingione developed a reputation as one of the best recruiters in the SEC, and helped MSU rank among the best teams in the nation every year. At St. Johns, Coggin learned how much recruiting helps a program. He developed contacts in Florida and south Georgia — both hotbeds for baseball recruiting.
Coggin knows he won’t have to sell MSU to a lot of the players he recruits because of its history, facilities, and fan support, but that part of his job will never stop.
“Recruiting is the backbone of a program,” Coggin said. “You have to have great players to compete and win at the highest level. Recruiting’s of the utmost importance.”
Jones feels like Coggin will be a head coach in the SEC very soon. For now, Coggin is happy with the job he has because he knows how hard he has worked to get it.
“It’s definitely something I’m going to hit the ground running with. There won’t be a day that comes by that I won’t take this opportunity granted,” Coggin said.
n In related news, Jake Mangum was named Tuesday to Perfect Game’s first-team Freshman All-America list.
The award is the second such honor in as many days after garnering the title from Baseball America on Monday. Mangum has been named to seven All-America teams by five publications.
The first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection led the conference with a .408 batting average. In May, he became the program’s first SEC Freshman of the Year in May. Mangum was the only player in the SEC to finish the season with a batting average higher than .400. He finished 22 points higher than his closest competition (Boomer White, Texas A&M, .386).
Mangum’s batting average is seventh in the NCAA, and the highest among freshmen. He also is fifth in the SEC on-base percentage (.458) and seventh in hits (84).
Mangum is playing summer ball for the Bourne Braves of the prestigious Cape Cod League, where he is hitting .353 after eight games.
Southern Mississippi relief pitcher Nick Sandlin was a second-team pick to the Perfect Game/Rawlings All-America list.
The right-handed hurler from Evans, Georgia, was 3-3 with a 2.38 ERA and a school and freshman record 12 saves in 26 appearances.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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