The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Shoop: The Man Behind 1,000 Wins
4/24/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
1,000th Win Recap
Story written by Steve Irvine:
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Oddly enough, a story written about the specialness of reaching 1,000 wins as a coach, which UAB baseball head man Brian Shoop did on Friday night, is not entirely about the number of victories that he's compiled in his impressive career.
Undoubtedly, the 14-9 Conference USA victory over Louisiana Tech, which pushed Shoop's career win total to the milestone mark and allowed him to join a select group of college baseball coaches, is worth celebrating. He became just the 80th coach in Division I history to reach the mark.
The Blazers are probably the only staff in the country with a pair of coaches - Shoop and volunteer coach Ron Polk, who had 1,373 in his Hall of Fame career - with 1,000 wins or more. Coaches certainly don't reach the lofty win total by accident.
For Shoop, though, the journey, perhaps more in the impact he's made on his players' lives, both on and off the field, might be the bigger story.
Simply put, as great as Shoop is as a baseball coach, said Auburn head coach Butch Thompson, he's a better man.
"The baseball is just secondary, that's my angle," said Thompson, who pitched and coached for Shoop at Birmingham-Southern College. "We're both coaches and all that, but the baseball is secondary to the impact that Brian Shoop has had on my life. He's so well rounded that I can't find an area in my life that he hasn't touched or developed me."
Thompson was a member of Shoop's coaching staff for seven of the nine years after he finished his playing days. It was during that time that Shoop not only encouraged him to study for his master's degree but also took another huge step in that process.
"He and (his wife) Brenda paid for every class in my master's," Thompson said. "Who does that? He wanted me to have a master's. It was a commitment from him and Brenda to help with that. It was amazing to me and he'd never tell that story. I am glad to have the opportunity to tell it."
Hundreds of young men have played baseball for Shoop in his 28 seasons as a college head coach. Each has their own story of the impact that Shoop made on them as baseball players and people.
Brewer Hicklen, the Blazers' starting centerfielder and leading hitter, knew that he wanted to play for Shoop in college. However, the third-year sophomore from Huntsville, Ala. nearly didn't get that chance.
"I got recruited in July and offered a scholarship," Hicklen said. "I didn't accept it on the spot. I wanted to think about it and pray about it. I had opportunities to play football and wanted to see how my senior football season went. I waited until about the seventh or eighth week and called him back."
The problem - Shoop and his coaching staff had moved on because they thought Hicklen had moved on.
"I didn't really communicate all that well," Hicklen said. "I called and expected it to be the best day of my life and they didn't have my scholarship. I was balling crying, I was so devastated. He said, 'You know, let me talk to the coaches and try to figure out something.' I came in as a walk-on and he told me 'As soon you get to year two, I'll put you on scholarship and try to make-up the year you lost in that scholarship,' and he did it and kept his word. There is no coach in the country that would do that and I stand by that 100 percent. He's an incredible man and a man of his word."
For the past three seasons, Hicklen has experienced what it's like to play for Shoop. The lessons aren't confined to the baseball field.
"Playing for Coach Shoop is unique," Hicklen said. "He is a guy that first cares most about your character and how you are as men and ultimately, how you are in your relationship with the Lord and to me, that's the most important thing. He's really challenged me to be more bold in my faith and be a spiritual leader on the team, in my relationship, and in my family."
UAB pitcher Dylan Munger, who is nearing of a unique trip through college baseball, witnessed firsthand what loyalty means to Shoop. Munger, who first arrived at UAB in the fall of 2011, missed back-to-back seasons and a large chunk of the following season because of injuries. Instead of giving up, however, Munger persevered and finally returned to the diamond in 2015.
"In the world of athletics, people that get hurt, most universities tend to let those guys go," Munger said. "I didn't play for two-and-a-half years. That was tough for me and tough for them because they had invested a scholarship into somebody who wasn't able to play for that long. He didn't stutter one step of it. He reassured me throughout that my scholarship was there and that was something he promises in the recruiting process. What they offer you, it will never decrease. That was really reassuring for me and my parents with school getting paid for. Although my body couldn't do what I wanted it to do with having surgeries, they still honored me and my scholarship no matter what."
That's just a small sampling of what Shoop has meant to his players. Many more tributes and congratulations - from former players and coaches from Birmingham-Southern and UAB - were posted on social media after Friday's milestone victory.
"It's just part of that family atmosphere that he creates," said former UAB standout Ryan Keedy, who played for the Blazers from 2006-08 and was a third team All-America selection during his final year. "He's very detailed. He does not forget a face, he does not forget a name. If I would walk up there today, it would be like I was still playing there. He's a very genuinely kind spirited guy, that's just who he is."
There's also a deeply competitive spirit to Shoop, even though that side isn't always easy to spot.
"I tell you this, from the outside looking in and when you speak to him or watch him, he's a very mild mannered guy," Keedy said. "Once those lights come on and the game starts, it's a little bit of a switch."
One of the first times that Keedy saw that flip switch came during a C-USA game at Tulane.
"They had one of those little bars in front of the dugout with the net on it," Keedy said. "There was a call that went their way and probably shouldn't have. He kind of spoke his mind a little bit, nothing crazy. An inning or two later, the same play happened with the same result. Boy, he hopped over that rail. It was the most animated I've ever seen. I remember looking at somebody and saying 'My goodness, where did that come from?'"
Obviously, that competitive nature is one of many reasons that he's become one of the top college coaches in the business. Shoop built Birmingham-Southern into a NAIA powerhouse, winning the national championship in 2001, before guiding the Panthers into NCAA Division I. He had the Panthers rolling at the highest level, advancing to a NCAA Regional in 2004, and was 699-300-1.
Shoop has led his teams to 301 victories since he took over the UAB program in June of 2006. His 2012 team captured the Conference USA Tournament, advancing to a NCAA Regional in Tallahassee, and his 2015 team had 35 victories, the most in the program since 1993, with a second place finish in C-USA regular season play.
What's been the secret to his success?
"First thing, he would probably tell you, is he's been blessed and fortunate in situations he's been in," said UAB assistant coach Perry Roth, who was on Shoop's staff for three seasons at Birmingham-Southern and has been with him the entire time at UAB. "He's had some nice players. There are the ones who ultimately win games for you."
That is certainly the case. Since Shoop took over the UAB program, the Blazers have featured 29 All-Conference players. Keedy compiled Conference USA Player of the Year numbers in 2008 - .423 batting average, 29 doubles, 10 home runs, 69 RBI and one error in 538 chances at first base. Chase Mallard was the C-USA Pitcher of the Year and an All-America selection in 2014.
The quality of the talent Shoop and his staff brought to UAB has also shown up in the Major League Baseball draft. In the first 32 years of the UAB baseball program, no Blazer player was drafted higher than the 16th round. Shoop's team had four players drafted in the 14th round or higher in recent years and pitcher James Naile, who was a 20th round by the Oakland A's in 2015, might be on track to become Shoop's first former Blazer to make a major league roster.
However, Thompson said, the success is more than just good players.
"I bet it didn't take me three or four practices at Birmingham Southern, when we started doing fundamental drills, where I saw how much he dotted I's and crossed t's on teaching of the game," Thompson said. "I'm like 'Man, this guy is saying things that I've never heard in rural Mississippi, where we just kind of threw the balls out and competed.' I was learning these techniques of the game that I'd never learned before."
With that being said, though, Shoop still finds ways to grow as a coach.
"In terms of his core values and who he is as a person and who he expects our players to be, he's (not changed) at all," Roth said. "But he's constantly looking for ways to improve the team. He's constantly trying to get better as a coach. You look at somebody who's (won) 1,000 games and, I think, is the 14th active winningest coach and, yet, he's constantly striving to improve as a coach. That's probably why he is where he is, because he hasn't just sat back and stopped learning."
One example of that is the way Shoop and his staff choose to build the roster around pitching and strong defense.
"We were hitting but we weren't winning," said Shoop. "We did a scholarship shift and it's made us competitive."
That's not saying that they ignore offensive production. Swinging the bats and scoring runs is important. But pitching and defense has been a vital part of the success. Pitching coach Josh Hopper, who is one of the best in college baseball, annually has one of the top staffs in C-USA and the defense is always top notch. This year's pitching staff - when healthy - is one of the top groups in C-USA. Thomas Lowery has been outstanding with a 4-1 record, four saves and an earned run average of 2.98. The defense has also been very good.
Thankful to be able to play college baseball at UAB for Coach Shoop. Congratulations on 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ wins!@UAB_Baseball pic.twitter.com/tS0z1VJ2YQ
— Matthew Calvert (@Mcalvert_21) April 22, 2017
Finding a way to reach 1,000 wins as a head coach hasn't been a priority for Shoop in the recent weeks. Finding a way to get his team better took precedent. When he reached the milestone, Shoop, a devoted husband to Brenda and devoted father to his five children, talked about the importance of family first. Winning games is important but its just part of his program.
When speaking after reaching the milestone, Shoop spoke passionately about his wife while fighting back tears.
"My family is amazing and my wife is unbelievable," said Shoop. "She raised five children and has brought them to every game, forever. I'll take being married to her over another 1,000 wins. There is no comparison."
Munger, who is in his sixth and final season with the Green & Gold, gave a perfect summarization of his coach.
"The wins don't really sum up how great of a coach he is," Munger said. "He's changed my life, personally, and I know he's changed a lot of the other guys' lives that he recruited here and that have played for him. He preaches on our three core values: Honoring God; Being uncommon; Being accountable. If you're looking for a perfect example of what that is, that's the life that he lives. It's good to have him to look up to as a leader, not just as a coach, but a leader in how things are supposed to be done in life."
For more information on the UAB baseball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_Baseball). For more on all Blazer sports teams follow the official social media accounts of UAB Athletics on Twitter (@UAB_Athletics), on Facebook (Facebook.com/UAB.Blazers), on Instagram (@uab_athletics) or on Snapchat (@uabathletics).
