Florida SouthWestern Baseball has had a long streak of success over the seasons.
The program started just seven years ago and has won back, to back, to back Suncoast Conference Championships. The great play is partly thanks to head coach Ben Bizier.
However, Bizier resigned from his position, leading FSW to search for a replacement.
On Wednesday, the Buccaneers announced the hiring of Zac Cole as their new baseball head coach.
“FSW Baseball has all of the tools and all of the resources to be the best program in the state of Florida,” Cole said. “So, I couldn’t be more excited to make the transition to Fort Myers and try to take this thing to the next level.”
Cole spent the last three seasons as the pitching coach at the College of Central Florida and six years as the head coach and manager in the Valley League, a summer collegiate league. He also has experience as a professional scout.
“He’s a great fit,” FSW Athletic Director George Sanders said. “He’s got a junior college background. He played at Palm Beach State. He’s from the state of Florida to start with. He’s recruited all over the state.”
Prior to his coaching career, Cole played at the junior college level at Palm Beach State College. He then went on to play at Tennessee Tech University, a Division I program. After school, Cole made it to the minor leagues.
Cole was raised in a baseball family. His father played at Florida State, where he remembers going to games and hanging out in the dugout. Cole’s brother also played baseball.
“Growing up, that is what we did,” Cole said. “We played baseball.”
One of the main reasons why FSW went with Cole over the other nearly 170 candidates is his standing in the sunshine state. He has established himself at the junior college level in Florida and formed relationships with many players, at all levels.
“They believed in my ability to recruit and bring in high quality and high character kids that are going to compete at the national level,” Cole said. “That’s our goal. We want to win the state of Florida and go to Grand Junction.”
Cole has his sights set on winning championships and developing his players for their next step. Junior college athletics is usually a stepping stone for athletes who want to play professionally or at a higher level. This is something that is important to Cole.
“Nothing excites me more than to see those guys get the opportunity to play professional baseball and play at the highest levels of college baseball,” Cole said. “We want to continue that tradition at FSW.”
Cole and Sanders have already spoken with multiple players and said they are excited with the hire.
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