2013 Media Guide - University of North Dakota Athletics

North Dakota
a
2013 NORTH DAKOTA BASEBALL
JEFF DODSON
Head Coach
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In 2008, the Redhawks nished 26-26 overall and 12-13 (sixth) in the Ohio
Valley Conference and made it to the OVC tournament championship round
before falling to Eastern Illinois.
Prior to his snt at Southeast Missouri, Dodson spent seven seasons as the
head coach at Marn Methodist College, an NAIA school in Pulaski, Tenn. Dodson
produced a 190-144 record at Marn Methodist, including four winning
seasons in his last ve.
Year: Fifth
Alma Mater: Livingston, ‘93
Je Dodson ocially became the rst Division I baseball coach in the history of
the University of North Dakota when he was hired on June 20, 2008. He took
over a program that spent the previous 50 seasons playing at the Division II
level in the North Central Conference.
The 2013 season will be his h season at the helm of
the program, one he helped usher through the NCAA
Division I transion.
The 2012 campaign featured a young roster with 14 freshmen
that made a run in the Great West Conference Tournament,
defeang its rst two opponents. This group etched a
19-37 overall record, coming on at the end of the season to
nish in third place at the GWC tourney.
Dodson helped his club overcome a shaky start to the 2011
season with a strong nish to the season, winning six of its
last 10 games. A nice run on their home eld at the Great West
Conference Tournament capped that stretch . No. 7 seed UND
upset No. 2 seed Northern Colorado and No. 3 seed Houston Bapst to
reach the seminals, but the magical run ended there as UND dropped two
straight to conclude their season.
In his second season, his squad increased its win total by ve games to 19
and posted a 13-15 mark in Great West acon to place h in the inaugural
league standings. Junior Jake Magner picked up four Naonal Player of the
Week honors during Dodson’s second season -- the rst such naonal honors
in program history. The Sioux slugger also earned rst team All-Great West
accolades aer breaking the single-season home run record with 21.
One of the team highlights came at the Metrodome in early April when UND
took three of four from rival North Dakota State. It was the rst me the
teams had met on the diamond since 2005.
While at Marn Methodist, Dodson coached four players into the professional
ranks. During his tenure, seven players were named All-
Americans, eight all-region, and 35 all-conference. In
2000, his pitching sta led the NAIA with a naonalbest
3.11 earned run average, and pitcher John Ogiltree
was named TranSouth pitcher of the year and a
rst-team All-American. That same year, Dodson’s
team broke the school record for wins, nishing with
a 42-16 mark.
As the head coach at Marn Methodist,
his teams broke nearly every school
record and in 2003 his team qualied
for the NAIA Region XI postseason
tournament with a 35-20 record.
Before Marn Methodist, Dodson
was head coach at Bevill
State Community College for two
seasons (1995-96). Dodson also
served as an associate scout with
the Philadelphia Phillies from
2001-2003. Three of his players
from Bevill went on to play
professional baseball and 12
went on to a four-year program.
Thirty-eight of his former players
have gone on to become
coaches.
Dodson earned his associate’s
degree in physical educaon
from Bevill State in 1989, his
bachelor’s degree in the same
eld from Livingston University
in 1993, and his master’s degree
from Emporia State in 2002.
Dodson inherited a club that had won 14 games in its nal DII season and
the rst-year skipper matched that win total in UND’s rst year as an independent
at the highest level of collegiate baseball.
UND defeated such established programs as Creighton and Missouri State,
plus won its rst Division I series at Southern Illinois. First baseman Jake
Magner earned rst team All-Independent honors and three Sioux were
named to the All-Independent Academic Team (CF Josh Lagein, SS Josh Nelson
and C Andrew Sadler). Dodson will lead a much more experienced squad
into year two of the transion, which will also be the team’s rst as Great
West Conference members.
Prior to his snt in Grand Forks, Dodson spent ve years as an assistant coach
at Southeast Missouri State, an NCAA Division I school in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
At SEMO, Dodson served as the pitching coach and recruing coordinator under
head coach Mark Hogan, who is Southeast’s all-me winningest baseball
coach.
Southeast Missouri State’s 2008 recruing class was ranked 91st in the na-
on by Collegiate Baseball, and Dodson recruited and signed three All-
Americans – Brad Smith, Nick Harris and Jim Klocke – since joining the
Southeast coaching sta in 2004.
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