UA-AU NOTES: Former Tide baseball coach Wells named to ABCA HoF '24 class
COMBINED REPORTS
Former Alabama head baseball coach Jim Wells was selected to the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame as part of the 2024 Class, the ABCA announced on Wednesday.
Wells, who is the first ABCA Hall of Fame inductee in Alabama program history, is part of 10 former head coaches that make up the 2024 class. He is joined by Cal Bailey (West Virginia State), Danny Hall (Georgia Tech), Pat McQuaid (Nova High School), Jim Morris (University of Miami), Brian O’Connor (Virginia), Tim Pettorini (The College of Wooster), John Vodenlich (Wisconsin-Whitewater), Wayne Welton (Chelsea High School) and Jeff Willis (LSU Eunice).
Wells compiled a career 625-322 record across 15 seasons at the Capstone, becoming the all-time winningest coach in the program. He led the Tide to five College World Series appeearances and 12 Regional berths.
Under Wells’ leadership, Alabama won three SEC Divisional titles, two regular season titles and six tournament championships, which is tied for the most in the tournament’s history. He was SEC Coach of the Year twice in 1996 and 2002.
Induction to the ABCA Hall of Fame is the highest honor bestowed by the organization. The ABCA was founded in 1945 with the Hall of Fame beginning in 1966. The 2024 ABCA Hall of Fame Banquet induction ceremony will be held during the 80th annual ABCA Convention on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024, at the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, Texas.
Bama baseball completes staff
Alabama head baseball coach Rob Vaughn officially announced the hiring of Mike Morrison over the weekend, joining associate head coach Jason Jackson and assistant coach Anthony Papio.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Mike Morrison and his family to Alabama,” said Vaughn. “Mo won a national championship at Coastal Carolina and brings a wealth of knowledge to Tuscaloosa from both the pitching and recruiting standpoint. He’s as relentless as it gets, and I couldn’t be more excited to have Mike, his wife, Jordan, and their son, Miles, join the Alabama Baseball Family.”
Serving as both recruiting coordinator and an assistant coach, Morrison will focus primarily on the Crimson Tide’s recruiting efforts while also supporting Vaughn in all aspects of on-field instruction. He arrives in Tuscaloosa after a two-year stint as the pitching coach at Maryland from 2022-23, helping the Terps to a combined 90 wins during that stretch. Prior to his time in College Park, he was the pitching coach at his alma mater, Coastal Carolina, in 2021 and served as the Chanticleers’ director of player development and scouting during the 2020 campaign.
Morrison’s guidance on the mound helped Maryland post a 42-21 record and earn an NCAA Regional bid in 2023. The Terps’ pitching staff was led by Jason Savacool, who paced the Big Ten in wins (9) while ranking second in innings pitched (96.0) and fourth in strikeouts (95). The junior earned second team All-Big Ten honors and was joined by Nick Dean (third team) and Kyle McCoy (freshman) on the all-conference rosters.
Auburn football sells out season ticket allotment
Auburn’s athletic department announced on Wednesday that it has sold out of public season tickets for the 2023 football season, selling 63,500 tickets.
“Here’s another example of the passion Auburn fans have for their team,” first-year head coach Hugh Freeze said. “We appreciate that overwhelming support and can’t wait to see everyone in person on September 2 at Jordan-Hare Stadium for Kickoff on The Plains.”
That number does not include student season tickets; those sales are ongoing and the combined total will be announced at a later date when student sales conclude.
The previous Auburn record was 62,900 season tickets sold before the 2014 season. Ticket allotments to visiting teams have changed since then, allowing for more seating availability.
The home matchup versus Georgia on Sept. 30 is also sold out. A very limited quantity of upper level single game tickets remain for the Nov. 25 home game with Alabama.
Remaining tickets will be made available exclusively to Tigers Unlimited society members through a dedicated on-sale launching on Wednesday, July 12. Additional information will be shared directly with those TUF members eligible to purchase via email early next week. No public tickets will be available for purchase for the Iron Bowl through the Auburn Ticket Office.
Fans can still secure their spot in Jordan-Hare Stadium for the 2023 season through single game package offerings now available, including all-new four-packs, which include four game tickets and a reserved parking pass to select contests. The first four-pack offering is available for only $70 as Auburn takes on UMASS on Sept. 2 at 2:30 p.m. at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Similar four-packs are available to home games against Samford, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and New Mexico State. These offers are limited in quantity and pricing is set to increase by $10 per package on August 11 if inventory remains.
Additional ticket offerings, including single game sales, will launch later in July if inventory remains. For more Auburn ticket information, go to aubtix.com online.