Gene Stephenson

Last updated

Gene Stephenson
Biographical details
Born (1945-08-31) August 31, 1945 (age 78)
Council Grove, Kansas, U.S.
Playing career
1965–1968 Missouri
Position(s) First baseman
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1969 Missouri (assistant)
1973–1977 Oklahoma (assistant)
1978–2013 Wichita State
Head coaching record
Overall1837–675–3 (.731)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
College Baseball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2014

Gene Stephenson (born August 31, 1945) [1] is an American former college baseball coach, who served as the head baseball coach at Wichita State from 1978 to 2013.

Contents

Career

When he arrived at Wichita State, he inherited a program that had been dormant for over seven years. In his first year, despite not playing a home game until their 18th game, his Shockers finished with a winning record. In his third year, they made the first NCAA tournament appearance in school history, and in his fifth they advanced all the way to the title game. The team, with four first team All-Americans (seven overall), lost to Miami. This was all the more remarkable considering that until 1984, they played at a bare-bones stadium with only a tiny bleacher section for seating. The momentum from their 1982 title game appearance helped spearhead the building of a permanent facility, Eck Stadium, in 1985.

Under his leadership, the Shockers made seven College World Series and 26 NCAA tournament appearances, including 14 straight from 1987 to 2000. His teams never had a losing season. His 1982 team went 73–14, establishing an NCAA record for single-season wins. [2] Stephenson won his first CWS championship in 1989; also in 1989, the Shockers won 24 consecutive games.

Prior to coaching at WSU, he served as an assistant coach at Oklahoma. During that tenure, the Sooners won five league championships, and went to five College World Series.

For most of the day on July 10, 2005, Stephenson was the head coach of Oklahoma. Several hours after accepting the job, however, Stephenson decided to remain at Wichita State, reportedly due to scholarship issues at Oklahoma. [3]

After 36 years, Stephenson was fired on June 4, 2013. [4] [5] [6] [7]

Personal life

Born in Council Grove, Kansas; Gene attended Guthrie High School, Guthrie, Oklahoma, then attended the University of Missouri with his first year on a football scholarship. He had better luck playing baseball, however; as a first baseman under legendary coach Hi Simmons, he was an All-American in 1967. Stephenson served a three-year stint in the United States Army, spending one year in Vietnam. Gene has two children, Jay and Ginny. [8]

His younger brother is Phil Stephenson, who played under him from 1980 to 1983. Gene and Phil were inducted into the Guthrie High School Hall of Fame in 1994. Gene was a first team all-state honoree in football and baseball in his senior year. [8]

Head coaching record

The following is a table of Stephenson's yearly records as an NCAA head baseball coach. [9] [10]

Statistics overview
SeasonTeamOverallConferenceStandingPostseason
Wichita State Shockers (Missouri Valley Conference)(1978–2013)
1978 Wichita State 43–30–1
1979 Wichita State 65–1510–2
1980 Wichita State 53–12–17–1 NCAA Regional
1981 Wichita State 56–1515–11st (West) NCAA Regional
1982 Wichita State 73–1415–11st (West) College World Series Runner-up
1983 Wichita State 55–187–11st (West) NCAA Regional
1984 Wichita State 40–227–74th
1985 Wichita State 68–2015–51st NCAA Regional
1986 Wichita State 45–1812–82nd
1987 Wichita State 59–2013–71st NCAA Regional
1988 Wichita State 56–16–116–41st College World Series
1989 Wichita State 68–1513–51st College World Series champions
1990 Wichita State 45–1914–6T–1st NCAA Regional
1991 Wichita State 66–1321–31st College World Series Runner-up
1992 Wichita State 56–1118–31st College World Series
1993 Wichita State 58–1717–31st College World Series Runner-up
1994 Wichita State 45–1719–21st NCAA Regional
1995 Wichita State 53–1724–81st NCAA Regional
1996 Wichita State 54–1124–41st College World Series
1997 Wichita State 51–1821–71st NCAA Regional
1998 Wichita State 56–726–11st NCAA Regional
1999 Wichita State 59–1424–71st NCAA Regional
2000 Wichita State 44–2124–81st NCAA Regional
2001 Wichita State 42–2421–112nd
2002 Wichita State 47–1723–91st NCAA Regional
2003 Wichita State 49–2719–132nd NCAA Regional
2004 Wichita State 49–1628–41st NCAA Regional
2005 Wichita State 51–2416–82nd NCAA Regional
2006 Wichita State 46–2215–93rd NCAA Regional
2007 Wichita State 53–2220–41st NCAA Super Regional
2008 Wichita State 48–1719–51st NCAA Super Regional
2009 Wichita State 30–2711–73rd NCAA Regional
2010 Wichita State 41–1915–6t-1st
2011 Wichita State 39–2614–72nd
2012 Wichita State 35–2512–93rd
2013 Wichita State 39–2815–62nd NCAA Regional
Wichita State:1837–675–3 (.731)590–192 (.754) [lower-alpha 1]
Total:1837–675–3 (.731)

      National champion        Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion        Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion      Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Incomplete (records unavailable for 1978)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Creighton Bluejays</span> Intercollegiate athletics teams of Creighton University

The Creighton Bluejays, or Jays, are the athletic teams that represent Creighton University, a Jesuit/Catholic University in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. They compete in NCAA Division I in the Big East Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Turgeon</span> American college basketball coach (born 1965)

Mark Leo Turgeon is an American college basketball coach. Turgeon served as the head men's basketball coach at Jacksonville State University from 1998 to 2000, Wichita State University from 2000 to 2007, Texas A&M University from 2007 to 2011, and University of Maryland, College Park from 2011 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregg Marshall</span> American college basketball coach

Michael Gregg Marshall is an American college basketball coach whose most recent position was head coach at Wichita State University. Marshall has coached his teams to appearances in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 14 of 22 years as a head coach. He is the winningest head coach in Wichita State and Winthrop history with 331 and 194 wins, respectively. He resigned on November 17, 2020, after an internal investigation following allegations by multiple former players detailing physical and verbal abuse at the hands of Marshall. Marshall was paid a settlement of $7,750,000 by Wichita State for his resignation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miami Hurricanes baseball</span> College baseball program

The Miami Hurricanes baseball team is the college baseball program that represents the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. Since 1973, the program has been one of college baseball's elite with 25 College World Series appearances, winning four national championships and advancing to the NCAA regionals a record 44 consecutive years, from 1973 to 2016. Miami has won 29 NCAA Regional Titles, hosted 27 NCAA Regionals, and in each of their four national championship runs they were an NCAA Regional Host.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loren Hibbs</span> American baseball player and coach

Loren Hibbs is an American baseball coach and former player, most recently serving as the interim head baseball coach for Wichita State for the 2023 season. He previously has served as the head baseball coach at Charlotte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wichita State Shockers</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of Wichita State University

The Wichita State Shockers are the athletic teams that represent Wichita State University, located in Wichita, Kansas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the American Athletic Conference since the 2017–18 academic year. The Shockers previously competed in the D-I Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) from 1945–46 to 2016–17; as an Independent from 1940–41 to 1944–45; in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIC) from 1923–24 to 1939–40; and in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1902–03 to 1922–23. As of the 2020s conference realignment, Wichita State is one of two full members of The American to have never been a member of Conference USA, although it became a single-sport member of that conference for bowling in 2024. They are also currently the only non-football-sponsoring institution that is a member of an FBS conference.

The Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team is the NCAA Division I college basketball program representing Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas.

Phillip Raymond Stephenson is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played all or parts of four seasons in the majors, from 1989 until 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wichita State Shockers baseball</span> Wichita State University baseball team

The Wichita State Shockers baseball team represents Wichita State University in the sport of baseball. The Wichita State Shockers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and in the American Athletic Conference after 72 seasons in the Missouri Valley Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Walton (softball)</span> American college softball coach and former baseball player

Timothy Ian Walton is an American college softball coach and a former college and professional baseball player. Walton is currently the head coach of the Florida Gators softball team of the University of Florida.

The 1989 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1989 NCAA Division I baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the College World Series, a double-elimination tournament in its forty third year. Eight regional competitions were held to determine the participants in the final event. Each region was composed of six teams, resulting in 48 teams participating in the tournament at the conclusion of their regular season, and in some cases, after a conference tournament. The forty-third tournament's champion was Wichita State, coached by Gene Stephenson. The Most Outstanding Player was Greg Brummett of Wichita State.

The 1989 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 1989 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Eck Stadium. The team was coached by Gene Stephenson in his 12th season at Wichita State.

Todd Butler is an American college baseball coach and former player. He played college baseball at McNeese State University from 1985 to 1986 before transferring to the University of Oklahoma in 1987 and 1988. He spent three years as the head coach at McNeese State from 2001 to 2003 and was the head coach of the Wichita State University from 2014 to 2019. Butler spent 16 seasons as an assistant coach in the Southeastern Conference under legendary Alabama coach Jim Wells and Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred VanVleet</span> American basketball player (born 1994)

Fredderick Edmund VanVleet Sr. is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

The 1993 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 1993 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Eck Stadium in Wichita, Kansas. The team was coached by Gene Stephenson in his sixteenth season as head coach at Wichita State.

The 1991 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 1991 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Eck Stadium in Wichita, Kansas. The team was coached by Gene Stephenson in his fourteenth season as head coach at Wichita State.

The 1982 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 1982 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Shocker Field in Wichita, Kansas. The team was coached by Gene Stephenson in his fifth season as head coach at Wichita State.

The 2008 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 2008 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Eck Stadium under 31st year coach Gene Stephenson.

The 2009 Wichita State Shockers baseball team represented Wichita State University in the 2009 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Shockers played their home games at Eck Stadium under 32nd year coach Gene Stephenson.

The 1970 Wichita Shockers football team was an American football team that represented Wichita State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference during the 1970 NCAA University Division football season. The team compiled a 0–9 record, finished last out of five teams in the MVC, and was outscored by a total of 381 to 99. The team played its home games at Cessna Stadium in Wichita, Kansas.

References

  1. ↑ "NCAA® Career Statistics".
  2. ↑ "The History of Shocker Baseball" (PDF). GoShockers.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2014. Retrieved June 12, 2012.
  3. ↑ Kimmey, Will (July 12, 2005). "True Shocker: Stephenson returns to Wichita State". Baseball America. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
  4. ↑ Chronicling 36 years with Gene Stephenson at Wichita State; The Wichita Eagle; June 4, 2013.
  5. ↑ Sexton says Stephenson’s 36-year tenure could’ve ended differently; The Wichita Eagle; June 4, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Sources: Wichita State's Gene Stephenson given choice of his exit as baseball coach; The Wichita Eagle; June 3, 2013". Archived from the original on June 9, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Bob Lutz: Stephenson has final chance to protect legacy; The Wichita Eagle; June 3, 2013". Archived from the original on June 9, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  8. 1 2 "Gene Stephenson Official Biography; Wichita State University". Archived from the original on May 20, 2011. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  9. ↑ "History & Records" (PDF). 2013 Missouri Valley Conference Baseball Media Guide. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
  10. ↑ "History" (PDF). Wichita State Shockers Baseball Media Guide. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 6, 2013. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.