STARKVILLE — There is no place like home, and for Mark Monaghan, home is Starkville.
A 1998 SHS graduate, Monaghan spent the last 11 years at DeSoto Central, developing one of the best baseball programs in Mississippi and the country.
After winning three state titles, five North State championships and more than 270 games with the Jaguars, he felt it was time to return home, and on Tuesday at Greensboro Auditorium he made it official.
“It’s super humbling. I feel really blessed to come back, to have such a warm reception. It means the world to me,” Monaghan said. “This was a big decision, a big move personally, and professionally. I couldn’t be more happy with how everyone has responded.”
His resume speaks for itself, and that pedigree of success is something that Starkville baseball fans will be looking forward to on the field come next spring.
The Jackets are coming off a season where they missed the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 6A playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade.
Monaghan, however, has not been a results-oriented coach, a philosophy that he hopes will translate into success at SHS.
“I want to bring the success that I’ve had in the past to Starkville and we’re excited to work toward that.” Monaghan said. “… Just hit the ground running. I’m not going to worry about wins and losses. I’m not going to worry about anything other than the process. That’s the day-to-day grind and work that it takes to compete at the highest level.”
The process to get him to Starkville, while quick, felt like years in the making for Jacket fans, with a number of coaching changes in the past few years.
Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Superintendent Tony McGee said he and Monaghan spoke for hours, and then he gave the coach time to think it over.
It didn’t take long for a response. For Monaghan, the decision to return to his alma mater and bring his family back to the area was a no-brainer.
“It became a family thing,” Monaghan said. “Just a lot of prayer, a lot of talking and with that, it became comfortable, it became right and the rest is history.”
The 2024 season is still months away, and the transition has barely begun. He has still yet to find a home in Starkville, but the excitement among those in attendance Tuesday, including Monaghan and his family, was palpable.
Starkville got its man, and it got a good one.
“I don’t think everybody gets to feel this, being able to have the success that you’ve had and come back to where it all started,” Monaghan said. “It means a lot.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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