FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
HARRISONBURG, Va., July 15, 2008 – James Madison University Director of Athletics Jeff Bourne announced Tuesday that JMU baseball coach Joe “Spanky” McFarland has signed a four-year contract extension with the Dukes, running through the 2012 season.
“The future looks bright for JMU baseball coming off its first Colonial Athletic Association championship,” said Bourne. “We are pleased to have Coach McFarland and his wealth of baseball experience on board, and we look forward to what is to come for the JMU baseball program.”
McFarland and the Dukes are coming off a 39-19 season in which they won the CAA championship and made their seventh appearance in an NCAA Division I Regional. McFarland was honored afterward with his first Virginia Coach of the Year award from the Virginia Sports Information Directors. JMU had the best winning percentage in the state and the second-best regular-season mark in the conference and is expected to return all but four players for the 2009 season with the majority being rising sophomores and juniors.
“I’m excited that JMU is where I want to be and the fact that this will give me three years in the new stadium and the chance to recruit towards that stadium,” said McFarland. “All of the kids that we’re recruiting right now will know who their coach is going to be. This is a big time in JMU baseball, and I’m happy to be part of taking it to the next level with the championship, the NCAA regional, a young team coming back, and a new stadium on the horizon. It’s an exciting time to be here, and I’m glad to be a part of it.”
McFarland is 343-283-2 in 11 seasons with the Dukes and celebrated his 500th career victory as a head coach during the 2008 season. He was named the CAA Coach of the Year in 2002 and was honored as the Louisville Slugger Conference Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2006. In addition to 2008, he also led JMU to an NCAA regional in 2002 in Columbia, S.C. In 30 total years of coaching, he has led teams to 12 NCAA appearances.
“I’m excited for Spanky, his family, and his staff,” said Associate Athletics Director for Sports Programs Kevin White. “Spanky and his staff have helped to restore a winning attitude to JMU’s rich baseball tradition, a tradition that will continue to rise.”
JMU plans to begin construction of a new baseball/softball complex in the fall of 2008 with both facilities intended to open in the spring of 2010. The complex will be located adjacent to JMU’s Memorial Hall, the former Harrisonburg High School site. The baseball field will retain the name of the current facility on that site, Veterans’ Memorial Stadium.
