John Rittman

Last updated
John Rittman
Current position
TitleHead coach
Team Clemson
Conference ACC
Record188-62
Biographical details
Born (1963-10-05) October 5, 1963 (age 60)
Playing career
Baseball
1982 Yavapai
1983–1985 New Mexico State
Position(s)Outfielder
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Softball
1988–1990 Oregon (asst.)
1991–1992 Minnesota (asst.)
1993–1996 Washington (asst.)
1997–2014 Stanford
2001–2008 United States (asst.)
2015, 2017 Kansas (assoc. HC)
2016–presentUnited States (asst.)
2020–present Clemson
Head coaching record
Overall938–413–3 (.694)
Tournaments NCAA: 41–36 (.532)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
As assistant coach:

As head coach:

Awards

John Richard Rittman (born October 5, 1963) is an American college softball coach, serving as the inaugural head coach of the Clemson Tigers softball team. He previously served as head coach at Stanford and an assistant with USA Softball, Kansas, Washington, Minnesota, and Oregon. [1] [2]

Contents

Education

An outfielder, Rittman played college baseball at Yavapai College before transferring to New Mexico State University and playing three seasons there from 1983 to 1985. [3] As a junior in 1984, Rittman played 51 games and batted .338 with 50 hits, 27 RBI, and one homer. [4] Rittman graduated from New Mexico State in 1986 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. [3]

Coaching career

Assistant coach (1988–1996)

Rittman was an assistant softball coach at Oregon from 1988 to 1990, Minnesota from 1991 to 1992, and Washington from 1993 to 1996, during which Oregon advanced to the 1989 Women's College World Series and Minnesota won the 1992 Big Ten Conference title. Joining the inaugural Washington coaching staff in 1993, Rittman helped Washington win the 1996 Pac-10 title and advance to the championship game of the 1996 Women's College World Series. [3]

Stanford (1997–2014)

In July 1996, Rittman became head coach at Stanford, a program that became a varsity sport in the 1994 season. [5] As head coach from 1997 to 2014, Rittman had a cumulative 750–351–3 record and one Pac-10 title in 2005, [6] [3] with 16 consecutive NCAA Division I Softball Championship appearances from 1998 to 2013, five Super Regionals, and two Women's College World Series berths in 2001 and 2004. [3]

At Stanford, Rittman coached several players who went on to play for the U.S. national women's softball team or elsewhere professionally, including Jessica Allister, Ashley Hansen, Lauren Lappin, and Jessica Mendoza. Mendoza and another Stanford player under Rittman, Ramona Shelburne, later became broadcasters for ESPN. Allister played two seasons in National Pro Fastpitch before returning to Stanford as an assistant coach under Rittman from 2007 to 2009 and becoming head coach at Stanford from 2018.

Rittman resigned from Stanford on June 2, 2014 after the team finished 5–19 in Pac-12 Conference games that season. [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] His resignation was surrounded by controversy and findings of a major NCAA rules violation. [12] [13]

Kansas and USA Softball (2015–2017)

He then spent two seasons at Kansas as associate head coach in 2015 and 2017, and also two stints as an assistant with USA Softball.

Clemson (2017–present)

On November 3, 2017, Rittman was named the inaugural head coach at Clemson. They played their first season in 2020, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [2]

Head coaching record

Sources: [14] [15]

Statistics overview
SeasonTeamOverallConferenceStandingPostseason
Stanford Cardinal (Pacific-10/Pac-12 Conference)(1997–2014)
1997 Stanford 31–27–110–185th
1998 Stanford 41–1817–113rd NCAA Regionals
1999 Stanford 40–2510–18T–6th NCAA Regionals
2000 Stanford 45–189–124th NCAA Regionals
2001 Stanford 54–16–111–10T–3rd Women's College World Series
2002 Stanford 44–207–14T–6th NCAA Regionals
2003 Stanford 41–267–14T–6th NCAA Regionals
2004 Stanford 49–1913–8T–2nd Women's College World Series
2005 Stanford 43–1613–8T–1st NCAA Super Regionals
2006 Stanford 42–1810–116th NCAA Super Regionals
2007 Stanford 35–21–17–13–16th NCAA Regionals
2008 Stanford 49–1511–104th NCAA Super Regionals
2009 Stanford 48–1113–84th NCAA Super Regionals
2010 Stanford 37–198–13T–6th NCAA Regionals
2011 Stanford 42–1710–115th NCAA Super Regionals
2012 Stanford 40–1911–136th NCAA Regionals
2013 Stanford 39–2113–114th NCAA Regionals
2014 Stanford 30–255–198th
Stanford:750–351–3 (.681)185–222–1 (.455)
Clemson Tigers (Atlantic Coast Conference)(2020–Present)
2020 Clemson 19–85–13rdSeason canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021 Clemson 44–829–51st NCAA Regionals
2022 Clemson 42–1714–105th NCAA Super Regionals
2023 Clemson 49–1218–63rd NCAA Super Regionals
2024 Clemson 35–1915–9T–4th NCAA Regionals
Clemson:189–64 (.747)81–31 (.723)
Total:939–415–3 (.693)

      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

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific Coast Conference</span> Former American college athletic conference

The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members now in the Pac-12, the older league had a completely different charter and was disbanded in 1959 due to a major crisis and scandal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanford Cardinal</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of Stanford University

The Stanford Cardinal are the athletic teams that represent Stanford University. Stanford's program has won 135 NCAA team championships, the most of any university. Stanford has won at least one NCAA team championship each academic year for 48 consecutive years, starting in 1976–77 and continuing through 2023–24. Through January 2024, Stanford athletes have won 552 individual NCAA titles.

The Arizona State Sun Devils are the athletic teams that represent Arizona State University. ASU has nine men's and eleven women's varsity teams competing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac-12 Conference. The mascot was adopted in 1946; earlier nicknames were the Normals and later, the Bulldogs. The Sun Devil mascot, Sparky, was designed by former Disney illustrator Bert Anthony. ASU's chief rival is the University of Arizona Wildcats, and both universities' athletics departments compete against each other in the Territorial Cup Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Huskies football</span> Football team of the University of Washington

The Washington Huskies football team represents the University of Washington in college football. Washington competed in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a charter member of the Pac-12 Conference, but will be joining the Big Ten Conference by the 2024 season. Husky Stadium, located on campus, has been the Huskies' home field since 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona Wildcats men's basketball</span> University of Arizona team

The Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. They compete in the Pac-12 Conference of NCAA Division I and is coached by Tommy Lloyd. On August 4, 2023, Arizona announced it would join the Big 12 Conference beginning in the 2024–25 academic year, after spending 50 years in the Pac-10/12 conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Graves</span> American basketball coach

Kelly Lee Graves is the current head women's basketball coach at the University of Oregon. Previously, Graves was the head women's basketball coach at St. Mary's from 1997 to 2000, as well as Gonzaga University from 2000 to 2014. He was formerly an assistant coach for the Portland Pilots (1994–1997) and St. Mary Gaels, where he later got his first head coaching stint with the Gaels from 1997 to 2000. From the 2004–2005 season to the 2013–2014 season, he guided Gonzaga to ten consecutive West Coast Conference regular season titles. The 2007 team went 13–1 in conference play, and later won the WCC conference tournament. The school also received its first ever NCAA tournament appearance. He was named WCC co-coach of the year for his accomplishments. In 2005, 2010, and 2011, Gonzaga went undefeated in WCC regular season play.

The Oregon Ducks baseball team represents the University of Oregon in NCAA Division I college baseball in the Pac-12 Conference. The home games are played on campus at PK Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Huskies softball</span> Washington softball team

The Washington Huskies softball team represents the University of Washington in NCAA Division I college softball competition. A member of the Pac-12 Conference, they play their home games on-campus at Husky Softball Stadium in Seattle, Washington. Through 2020, the Huskies have made 14 appearances at the Women's College World Series and won the national title in 2009.

The Stanford Cardinal softball team represents Stanford University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team participates in the Pac-12 Conference. The Cardinal are currently led by head coach Jessica Allister. The team plays its home games at Boyd & Jill Smith Family Stadium located on the university's campus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UCLA Bruins softball</span> College softball team

The UCLA Bruins softball team represents the University of California, Los Angeles in NCAA Division I softball. The Bruins are among the most decorated programs in NCAA softball, leading all schools in NCAA championships with 12, 13 overall Women's College World Series championships, championship game appearances with 22, WCWS appearances with 29, and NCAA Tournament wins with 187.

Lisa Nicole Dodd is an American college softball coach and former player who was the head coach at Santa Clara from 2018 to 2019 and UNLV 2013 to 2017. Dodd played college softball at UCLA.

Jessica Lynne Allister is an American softball coach and former catcher who is the current head coach at Stanford. Allister played college softball at Stanford and earned second-team All-American honors in her senior season of 2004. After a two-year professional softball career with the New England Riptide of National Pro Fastpitch, Allister began a coaching career as an assistant coach at Georgia, Stanford, and Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clemson Tigers softball</span> College softball team

Clemson Tigers softball joined the Atlantic Coast Conference as a Division I varsity program in 2020. In November 2017, former Stanford coach John Rittman was named as Clemson's first head softball coach. Rittman spent the previous two years as an assistant coach at Kansas and USA Softball.

Alana Maree "Lonni" Alameda is an American softball coach who is the current head coach at Florida State. She has been head coach at Florida State since 2009, in addition to the USSSA Pride of National Pro Fastpitch from 2016 to 2017. Alameda is also currently an assistant coach for Team Canada.

Mike White is a New Zealand-born American softball coach who is the current head coach at Texas.

Jamie Trachsel is an American softball coach who is the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels softball team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trisha Ford</span> American softball coach

Trisha Lynn Ford is an American college softball coach. She is the head softball coach at the Texas A&M University, a position she has held since the 2023 season. Ford served as the head softball coach at Saint Mary's College of California from 2002 to 2003, California State University, Fresno from 2013 to 2016, and Arizona State University from 2017 to 2022.

The 2021 Clemson Tigers softball team is the varsity college softball team that represented Clemson University during the 2021 NCAA Division I softball season. This was the second season of Clemson's softball program. The Tigers competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and were led by head coach John Rittman. Clemson played its home games at McWhorter Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina.

Kirk Walker is an American softball coach, currently serving as associate head coach of the UCLA Bruins softball team. He previously served as the head coach for the Oregon State Beavers softball team, where he is the winningest softball coach in program history.

The 2022 Clemson Tigers softball team was the varsity college softball team that represented Clemson University during the 2022 NCAA Division I softball season. This was the third season of Clemson's softball program. The Tigers competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and were led by head coach John Rittman. Clemson played its home games at McWhorter Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina.

References

  1. ↑ "Clemson hires former Stanford coach to lead Tigers' program". USA Today . November 3, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Clemson hires first-ever softball coach for new program". Post and Courier . Charleston, South Carolina. November 3, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "John Rittman". Stanford University. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  4. ↑ http://web1.ncaa.org/app_data/statsPDFArchive/MBA1/Baseball_Men's_Division%20I_1984_472_New%20Mexico%20State%20University.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  5. ↑ Davidson, Robin. "Rittman brings a winning look to softball squad". The Stanford Daily. Archived from the original on February 6, 1997. Retrieved June 14, 2018. ...what Stanford softball coach John Rittman aims to do as he takes over the softball program in its fourth year as a varsity sport.
  6. ↑ "NCAA Statistics: John Rittman". NCAA. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  7. ↑ Cohn, David (June 3, 2014). "Softball head coach John Rittman resigns". The Stanford Daily. Archived from the original on June 10, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  8. ↑ Reid, John (June 3, 2014). "Silence is deafening at Stanford after successful coach exits". Palo Alto Daily News. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  9. ↑ Beyda, Joseph; Cohn, David; Trinh, Elizabeth; Chen, George (May 28, 2015). "Stanford softball in shambles after infighting, controversial resignation". Stanford Daily . Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  10. ↑ Frazier, Greg (May 27, 2015). "Once-proud Stanford softball program brought to its knees". Palo Alto Daily News. Archived from the original on May 19, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  11. ↑ FitzGerald, Tom (June 13, 2015). "Coach's ouster created schism in Stanford softball program". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  12. ↑ FitzGerald, Tom (2016-09-15). "NCAA fines, reprimands Stanford for football, softball violations". SFGate. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
  13. ↑ "Stanford guilty of 'major' NCAA violations for first time". Los Angeles Times . Associated Press. 16 September 2016. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
  14. ↑ "Annual Standings". 2015 Pac-12 Softball Media Guide. Pac-12. 2015. pp. 55–56.
  15. ↑ "Stanford at the NCAA Tournament". GoStanford.com. Stanford University. August 15, 2014. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
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.