With the roster set for the 2008 baseball season, recruiting for the 2009 season is one the programs top priorities.
"We’ve got four commitments, to this point, for the early signing period in November, so we’re kind of ahead of the game," head coach Rayner Noble said. "We’re still trying to pick up about two more players so that we can get it all done in November."
Because the baseball programs past success, not only in Conference USA, where they reached the conference final in 2006, but also throughout the NCAA where they reached the NCAA Norman Regional and earned national rankings just a couple seasons ago as well, the team has been able to recruit some great prospects.
"The University of Houston offers a tremendous education and we play a very good brand of baseball," Noble said.
Noble also received a contract extension in June that will keep him with the team through the 2012 season. He believes that this will aid in the team’s recruiting process because it will let the future players know that there will be continuity throughout the coaching staff.
Home cooking
The state of Texas is not only a melting pot for great NCAA baseball, but it is also a great place to find some of the best high school and junior college players in the country.
So much so that most of the Cougars’ recruiting comes straight from the Lone Star State.
"(Texas) is a big state, there’s a lot of players here, and we don’t really have to go very far from home to fill out our roster," Noble said.
The Cougars are not just getting some of Texas’ best athletes, but they are taking them from some of college baseball’s best teams. Of the team’s new additions for the 2008 season, freshman infielder Blake Kelso was recruited by Texas and Texas Christian, and freshman pitcher Ty Stuckey was looked at by Texas A’M and Arizona State.
"That’s the type of talent we need to put together a program that sits in the top 20 annually in the rankings," Noble said.
Committed to the community
Off the field, the team has begun work with Texas Children’s Hospital, something the team feels strongly about.
They hope that talking and spending time with the children will help keep the children’s spirits up.
"Hopefully we can get over there and shed a ray of light and hope on some of these children, " Noble said.
Another of the team’s activities is the Elite Showcase Camp, which runs from Nov. 9-11 and is open to high school students from grades 10 through 12.
The camp gives the attendees a chance to learn from some the area’s top instructors and colleges a chance to scout prospectives.
"We bring in various levels of coaches all the way from the (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics), to junior colleges, to NCAA division II, so it’s also for these other coaches to come in and work the camp and let them see these players as well," Noble said.
"We want to give these kids as many opportunities as possible to move on beyond high school," he said.
Nov. 7 is the last day of registration and can be completed at the www.cougarbaseballcamp.com.
