Since his appointment in 1996, NC State baseball head coach Elliott Avent has revamped the school’s second-oldest program, taking the Wolfpack to the NCAA Tournament in 13 of the last 18 seasons and 10 of the last 12.
In 2013, Avent led his team to the College World Series for the team’s first appearance since 1968 and the school’s second trip to Omaha in program history. Despite a talented 2014 roster, however, the program underperformed.
Now, Avent faces another challenge: replacing MLB-level talent that departed the team at the end of last season. Fortunately for the Pack, the man at the helm has more than three decades of experience to draw from as he leads the next generation of State players forward.
“It’s always fun to put pieces together,” Avent said. “That’s what coaches like to do, put pieces together and work things out.”
Avent began his coaching career as an assistant coach at North Carolina Wesleyan from 1981-82. Avent coached under former Old Dominion head coach Tony Guzzo and helped lead the Bishops to a two-year record of 62-28 and a fourth-place finish in the 1982 NCAA Division III World Series.
Avent followed Guzzo to Virginia Commonwealth University, where he worked for the 1983 season. From 1984-85, Avent was an assistant coach at Louisburg (N.C) Junior College under Hall of Fame coach and NC State Alumnus Russ Frazier.
Before coming to NC State, Avent spent eight seasons (1989-96) coaching at New Mexico State University, where he built a 225-213 record and left as the second-winningest coach in school history.
Avent took over a New Mexico State program that school administrators were considering dropping, and guided it to its greatest success ever. In half of his seasons there, he led the Aggies to 30 victories, more than all previous coaches in school history combined.
During his tenure at NC State, Avent has accrued 681 career wins, produced 21 All-Americans, 82 MLB draftees and six of the eight first-team All-Americans in the program’s 107-year history.
Avent won both ACC and National Coach of the Year honors in 2003. In 2004, he was selected for the USA Baseball team’s coaching staff and won a Gold Medal at the World University Games in Chinese Taipei.
Though he has accomplished so many rare achievements in his coaching career, Avent lives in the moment. In his 18th year at NC State, Avent realizes that the the coming season brings pressuring adversity in the the form of a daunting conference schedule and an inexperienced roster.
The departures of many key players from last season has wounded his team’s depth, but Avent looks to continue the Pack’s tradition of success this Spring by making the proper adjustments on the field and in the batting order with the young talent he is given in his 2015 roster.
“There’s no way to have expectations for a club that’s going to have so many new players,” Avent said. “We’re trying to get people in the right spots, there’s going to be some moving around, and It’s how we manage the bumps and bruises early on in the season that will have a lot to do with how this team winds up.”
Avent has always brought the best out of the players he is given, and has shown it time and time again. When given a roster with little experience, it is the coach’s job to pay close attention to each player’s attributes, and make the ultimate decision of who starts and at what position he feels is most advantageous for the team.
“This is a whole different ball club; it’s all new guys,” Avent said. “When you see the guys trot out there, you’re going to know a couple of guys and that’s it.”
Though NC State may have a season of rebuilding in store, the program counts on Avent’s experience to carry it in the right direction.
