Jones hired to be next Wildcats baseball coach

By Sam McClanahan

Nate Jones had a feeling this day would come, but he's willing to admit that it's all happening sooner than he anticipated.

Less than two years after he retired from his 10-year Major League Baseball career to return home and enjoy the simple life, he's now returning to the diamond to start a new role: varsity head coach.

On May 22 it was announced that the 2004 Pendleton County alum would be taking over the high school baseball program where his journey to the big leagues got started. He'll make his coaching debut in 2024, nearly 20 years after he played his final game as a Wildcat.

"This is an honor and a privilege that I take very seriously," Jones said. "It's exciting to get the chance to coach in my hometown, and I'm already putting together ideas on how we can have a successful first season," he added.

Jones says that the intrigue to take over the program he once played for has been in his mind for some time, but it was just a matter of timing. He shared that he was approached shortly after announcing his retirement in August of 2021 about his interest in becoming head coach but turned it down at that time. Upon returning home, he has become involved in coaching youth league recreational sports in Pendleton County and had to find out for himself he was cut out to be an instructor.

"I felt like I needed to get some practice in before I jumped into anything really big," Jones said with a laugh. "I've helped out in coaching some teams my kids have played for, and I had to find out if I had the patience in working with young athletes who are all on different skill levels. I have greatly enjoyed being on the fields with the kids and this experience helped in deciding on whether to take on the varsity program or not."

Jones will bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise with him to a Wildcats program that is in dire need of stability and leadership. And having a former professional athlete among the options to take on the role made it a clear choice for Pendleton County High School Athletic Director Jon Wirth.

"We are excited to welcome Nate back home, where it all started. His playing experience and knowledge he has to share with our baseball team will be immeasurable. I'm really excited to see what he can do with our baseball program and even more excited to have him back home contributing to our community in many ways," Wirth explained.

Jones understands that the task ahead will be challenging as he looks to revive a program that has primarily struggled for much of the time since he graduated. Over the past 15 years, the Wildcats have posted two winning seasons (2011, 2012) and claimed one district tournament victory (2015). And perhaps the most glaring obstacle the team has faced has been a frequent turnover in head coaches. Colin Duffie led the program for three seasons (2018, '19 and '21) and prior to that, the last coach to serve for three seasons or longer was Murph Howard who departed after the 2010 season. Jones played for the last Wildcat squad to win a postseason title as he was apart of the 2002 district championship team.

"What I'll be looking to accomplish is making our players understand the importance of not just playing for the name on the back of their uniform but also the front of it. I want all of my players to be good representatives of the school, program and County. A good team is always 

disciplined, full of positivity and one that is fundamentally sound. We will spend a lot of time working on improving our skills to make the game as simple as it can be. At the high school level, it can be easy for one mistake to lead to another, and next thing you know the inning has gotten away from you. For our teams to be successful we’ll have to be able to make the routine plays and not give away easy outs and runs,” Jones explained.

Jones also mentioned that he plans to continue to assist in development of local boys at the youth levels. He strongly believes that any successful program starts at the beginning stages in teaching fundamentals to young players that they can build from and be ready to compete going into the middle school and high school ranks.

Looking ahead to the 2024 season, the team will look to carve out an identity following the departure of eight seniors but will still feature a good mix of experience and youth. Jones and his staff will look to make the first step in turning his alma mater back into the right direction.

“You look around the area and see other programs having consistent success, and I want to make the players here believe that they can enjoy that too. Why can’t it be our time? Why not us? Let’s put together a plan and work hard to make it happen.”