“We’ll go to work next year,” Swope said. This season, Maryland’s pitchers allowed the second most runs among Power Five teams. Morrison was hired by Vaughn two seasons ago and has led underperforming staffs in his tenure. Swope declined to answer if pitching coach Mike Morrison will return next season. The lack of depth this postseason meant Vaughn had to turn to inexperienced pitchers in big moments, which led to a 1-2 showing in the Winston-Salem Regional. Swope’s always primarily worked with hitters, but pitching has plagued Maryland and kept it from advancing further than a regional over the last three years. A similar haul will be required again this offseason. Elijah Lambros and Eddie Hacopian were prizes from last year’s portal expedition. The coach inherits a sizable rebuild project, but the Terps have shown an ability to attack the portal to acquire impact hitters. A number of players have entered the transfer portal in addition to several veteran stars likely headed for the MLB draft. Swope’s first offseason as head coach has already been mired by a slew of departures. “It was kind of easy in making this decision to bring him on board as the next head coach.”īut much of that production from previous seasons won’t return. “Swope has been a part of the greatest era in the history of Maryland baseball,” Evans said. Luke Shliger paced the country with 93 runs scored, also a Terps single-season record. Nick Lorusso led college baseball with 105 RBIs this season, the first player in 20 years to eclipse 100 in Division I play 20 years. He coached consecutive Big Ten Player of the Year winners in Chris Alleyne and Matt Shaw. Swope was instrumental in the developments and breakouts of the players who anchored those records. The Terps hit 131 this season, the third-most homers in Division I. Maryland broke its single-season home run record in 2022 with 137 long balls. He led multiple record-setting offensive seasons over the last three years. He began as director of operations in 2013 and became hitting coach in 2018. Swope just concluded his 11th season on staff. Swope was always Evans’ top choice to replace Vaughn, the athletic director said. “When you have someone like Rob Vaughn … you have to be prepared to know that people are going to try to come poach your coaches,” Evans said. Byrne called Evans sometime in the following weeks. TideIllustrated reported that Crimson Tide athletic director Greg Byrne visited College Park to watch the Terps play May 12, eight days after Alabama fired Brad Bohannon. Alabama’s interest in Vaughn ramped up during the final weeks of Maryland’s season, Evans said.
Baylor, among other schools, had strong interest in Vaughn after the 2022 season, signaling to Evans he needed to start a succession plan.
Swope interviewed for the newly-vacant position, and just hours later he was officially offered the job.Įvans had been preparing for this possibility since last year. Still, he quickly got to campus when the athletic director asked. Swope didn’t sleep much the night before - the air conditioning in his house was broken. The call from Damon Evans came early Monday morning. Now, it’s his turn to ensure it continues. Under Vaughn, Swope witnessed some of the most successful years in Terps history. Swope became the ninth head coach in Maryland baseball history this week, replacing Rob Vaughn after the latter departed for Alabama. He took Route 1 to get to DeMatha Catholic High School daily, which gave him a frequent glimpse of the college he’d eventually play baseball for.Īnd after a four-year career as a player and 11-year tenure as assistant coach, Swope will lead the program he contributed to for over two decades. Swope’s father, also a Maryland alum, often brought his son to his Sigma Chi fraternity house where Swope played basketball. He grabbed a wristband from Scott Milanovich that day, which he still has in his collection of Terps memorabilia in his house. He recalls weaving around security guards to rush the football field in Byrd Stadium as a child after a big win. It’s hard for Matt Swope to remember a time when his life wasn’t absorbed by Maryland in some facet.
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