FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn Athletics Director Jay Jacobs announced Friday that John Pawlowski has been named head baseball coach. Pawlowski spent the previous nine seasons as the head coach at the College of Charleston, where he led the program to three NCAA postseason berths, one Super Regional appearance and four Southern Conference titles.
“This is a tremendous opportunity and I’m looking forward to helping bring the Auburn baseball program back to national prominence,” Pawlowski said. “There is a rich history and tradition here at Auburn and I plan on working tirelessly to make this a national contender.”
Pawlowski posted a 338-192-1 record during his tenure at College of Charleston, including a 180-67 record from 2004-07, the most wins in school and Southern Conference history for a four-year span.
Under his direction, Pawloswki led the Cougars to three-consecutive NCAA Regional appearances from 2004-06, while winning Southern Conference regular season titles in 2004 and 2005. His 2004 squad set a then-school record with 47 wins and bettered that mark in 2005 with 48 victories. The 2004 conference title and NCAA appearance were both firsts in the program’s history.
Pawlowski, 44, led Charleston to unprecedented heights in 2006. Charleston, which posted a 46-17 overall record and a 20-7 league mark, finished ranked as high as 12th nationally after winning the school’s first Southern Conference Tournament title and the NCAA Lexington Regional championship. The team also made its first-ever Super Regional appearance before bowing out to Georgia Tech in Atlanta.
“We are very excited to have John Pawlowski as our next baseball coach at Auburn University,” said Jacobs. “Coach Pawlowski has experienced a tremendous amount of success as a head coach and has led several championship ball clubs. We look forward to him returning the Auburn program to national prominence.”
In 2007, the Cougars won their fourth conference title in as many seasons after winning the Southern Conference regular season title. This past season in 2008, The Cougars posted a 39-20 overall record and an 18-9 league mark. The Cougars set Southern Conference records for homers in a season (130), runs (627), RBI (587), total bases (1,304), slugging percentage (.607) and walks (329).
The 2004, 2005 and 2007 Southern Conference Coach of the Year, Pawlowski’s Charleston players earned 42 all-conference honors, four academic All-America honors, with three SoCon Pitchers of the Year and two Players of the Year. Additionally, he has had 17 all-America honors bestowed upon his players since 2001.
During Pawlowski’s tenure in Charleston, 26 players were selected in the Major League Draft, including a school-record nine in 2008.
Prior to his arrival at College of Charleston, Pawlowski was the pitching coach at Arizona State in 1999 and served as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at Clemson from 1994-98. During that time, the Tigers made five consecutive NCAA regional appearances and two trips to the College World Series (1995 and 1996).
While an assistant at Clemson, Pawlowski’s staff led the country in earned run average in 1996 with a staff that featured the No. 1 and No. 4 overall picks in the MLB draft that year in Kris Benson and Billy Koch. In his five years at Clemson, the Tigers had 15 pitchers drafted, while the recruiting classes ranked in the top 10 nationally each year.
As a player at Clemson from 1983-85, Pawlowski finished his Tiger career with a 21-12 record and a 3.89 ERA over 54 games. He made 30 career starts working 240 1/3 innings with eight complete games, three shutouts and five saves.
He was the sixth-round draft pick of the Chicago White Sox in 1985 and made his major league debut in September of 1987. After playing over eight years for the Chicago White Sox (1985-91), California Angels (1991-92) and Baltimore Orioles (1992) organizations, Pawlowski returned to Clemson to begin his coaching career and complete his degree.
He received his bachelor’s degree in Industrial Education from Clemson University in May of 1996. The Johnson City, New York native graduated from Seton Catholic Central in Binghamton, N.Y. in 1982. In 2007, he was inducted into the Upstate New York Section IV Hall of Fame. Pawlowski has three daughters, Christine (16), Mary Louise (13) and Jenny Caroline (7).
