(#26) ***Breaking News: (January 18, 2023) The Coach has been selected for induction into the Mississippi Association of Community College Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will be this summer. Congrats! Well deserved and it's about time.*** George McQuitter left his mark of success on two baseball programs that eventually found success as one. … Continue reading “2-6”
Category: Stories 21-30
Thanks Jeff!
(#30) Here are some kind words from Jeff McClaskey, one of my great players at Magnolia and Hinds, who went on to an outstanding coaching career, mostly at Northwest Rankin where the baseball stadium he built is named in his honor. This was included, at his request, in a newspaper article about his retirement from … Continue reading Thanks Jeff!
A Man of Great Vision
(#29) One of the great things about coaching is you not only get to share in the great stories and performances of your own players, but of players on the opposing teams as well. One of those inspiring stories came in the spring of 2005 from a right-handed pitcher for East Central Community College by … Continue reading A Man of Great Vision
Moose Tales
(#28) Playing high school baseball for the great Bill "Moose" Perry in the early 1970s is something that most modern day kids, and their parents, just could not survive. This is just one of the many, many stories. It has been said that Moose left his mark on the game. I know he left his … Continue reading Moose Tales
Gurganus, Eagles Stun #1 Northwest
I'm on a road trip today to watch Hinds take on Northwest in a best-of-three series in Senatobia with the winner advancing to the Region 23 Tournament in Poplarville beginning on Monday, May the 13th. As I travel I-55 North, I can't help but reminisce about the "post-season magic" team of 1999 (25th anniversary) when … Continue reading Gurganus, Eagles Stun #1 Northwest
“Take It All Off!”
(#25) At Magnolia Academy we always seemed to lose to our neighborhood, arch-rival Mississippi Baptist at least once each season. Either we played differently when we played them or they played differently when they played us. Or both. But it could have just been facing crafty pitchers like Bo Kirby and others, who were masters … Continue reading “Take It All Off!”
Moose Tales: The Run Over the Catcher Drill
(#24) I got moved to catcher during the fall of my junior year at Forest Hill in 1971. Coach Perry said it was because I was such a good glove at second base and he really needed me behind the plate to handle all of the wild pitchers we had, but I really think it … Continue reading Moose Tales: The Run Over the Catcher Drill
My Favorite Magnolia Academy Baseball Memories, Volume 1
(#23) In no particular order..... We won 26 championships in six seasons...unprecedented. Nobody ever won that many tournament and playoff championships in that span of time. We were the first private school team to win 30+ games in a season and the second Mississippi High School to do it. Clinton High School went 32-2 in … Continue reading My Favorite Magnolia Academy Baseball Memories, Volume 1
Chisolm
(#22) It was spring of 1979 and the Magnolia Academy Raiders were leading arch-rival Brandon Academy Rebels 2-0 in the bottom of the seventh inning on the road in Brandon. Magnolia ace right-hander Ricky Chisolm was on the mound. He was on cruise control, dominating the Rebels, pitching a 2-hit shutout, with no walks and … Continue reading Chisolm
Rags and the Map
(#21) We were playing Delgado Community College in the championship game of the 1989 Region 23 Tournament in Meridian. We were undefeated, so the Dolphins would have to beat us twice to advance to the Eastern District Tournament the following week. The winner of that four team, double elimination tournament would advance to the JUCO … Continue reading Rags and the Map
Rick Clarke's Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach 