Lex Kaplan knocks in Williams with this 6th inning home run. Photo by David Cohen, (BHEphotos)
“I look forward to having Travis, and his wife Tracy, join the Green Wave family,” said Dannen. “He brings a strong portfolio of assets to an already elite program. He has had a long and distinguished career as an assistant coach at both public and private institutions, and has experienced success at every stop, including the ultimate success of winning a national championship at an academic peer institution, Vanderbilt.”
Jewett becomes just the fifth head coach to man the Green Wave dugout as head coach since 1967, joining Milt Retif (1967-74), Joe Brockhoff (1975-93), Rick Jones (1994-2014) and David Pierce (2015-16).
“I’m certainly thankful for the opportunity to work for such a great university,” stated Jewett. “I’m really looking forward to helping spread the brand of Tulane University. The educational pieces of the school are really an important thing for me. The ability to share that with the families of the kids that we are going to recruit is something that I have a tremendous amount of confidence in because that is where it all starts. I’m excited to keeping Tulane baseball rolling and getting everyone on board. I’m ready to keep Tulane baseball where it needs to be, which is in the upper echelons of college baseball.”
Jewett owns an impressive resume, as he has been one of the top assistants in Division I since 1999. The native of Tacoma, Washington, has made stops at Vanderbilt (2013-16), Arizona State (2010-12), Washington State (2005-09), Washington (2002-04) and Gonzaga (1999-2001). Prior to moving to the DI level, Jewett served as the head coach at a pair of community colleges in Edmonds (WA) C.C. (1997-98) and Tacoma (WA) C.C. (1995-96). He also served as an assistant at Tacoma C.C. in 1994 before moving into the head coaching role the following year.
During his coaching career, Jewett has coached numerous major leaguers, including Jason Bay, Brent Lillibridge, Bo Hart, Sean White and 2008 and 2009 Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum.
In 2016, Jewett was promoted to associate head coach under Tim Corbin at Vanderbilt. The team finished 43-19, and with Jewett’s hitting prowess, Commodore sluggers led the Southeastern Conference in triples while ranking eighth nationally in the category. Vanderbilt also ranked 33rd nationally in runs scored. Two batters in Alonzo Jones and Ethan Paul earned Freshman All-American honors, while Jeren Kendall and Bryan Reynolds were tabbed as Third Team All-Americans by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). In each of Jewett’s four seasons in Nashville, the Commodores produced at least two All-Americans.
The Vanderbilt offense blossomed in 2015 into a powerful lineup that produced 69 home runs, the most since 1998, while hitting .290 as a team and leading the Southeastern Conference in doubles and triples. Three hitters in Jeren Kendall, Bryan Reynolds and Kyle Wright earned All-SEC Second team accolades, while Connor Kaiser and Ethan Paul picked up Freshman All-SEC honors.
For the second straight season under Jewett’s guidance, Dansby Swanson was named an All-American, earning first team honors and National Player of the Year accolades en route to being the top overall pick in the MLB Draft. Rhett Wiseman picked up All-American honors after hitting 15 home runs to lead the team along with Swanson and Zander Wiel. Jewett also developed a pair of freshmen into Freshman All-Americans in Kendall and Will Toffey.
Jewett’s second Vandy team won the school’s first-ever national championship in 2014. The Dores’ offense caught fire in the NCAA Tournament hitting .322 with 48 runs during the NCAA Regionals and Super Regionals. In Omaha, the Commodores stole a College World Series record 17 bases on its way to the National Championship.
Jewett added two more All-Americans to his list in Vince Conde and Swanson in 2014 with both infielders earning first team All-SEC honors as well. Swanson led the nation and matched the school record with 27 doubles as part of the Dores’ 145 doubles as a team, the most since the 2010 team set the school record with 160. In his rookie campaign, Reynolds led the Commodores in hitting with a .338 average and 24 doubles to garner Freshman All-American honors.
The Commodores’ offense clicked under Jewett’s guidance in 2013 during his first year in Nashville with the Dores improving in virtually every offensive category, hitting .313 as a team – 45 points higher than 2012 – to lead all Southeastern Conference teams. Vanderbilt also led the SEC in slugging percentage (.439), on-base percentage (.407), runs scored (459), RBI (418), triples (17), walks (295) and stolen bases (139). Along with the team successes, multiple individuals produced career years under Jewett for the first time. Tony Kemp was named SEC Player of the Year after hitting a career-best .391 and posting an on-base percentage of .471 in his final year in Black & Gold. Connor Harrell bounced back from a tough junior season to be the Commodores’ main source of power with a team-high 12 home runs. Harrell hit a career-best .312 while driving in 67 runs, sixth-most in school history.
Jewett’s leadership with the team’s outfielders molded the Commodores’ outfield into one of the best in the nation in 2013 with a trio of seniors in Jack Lupo, Connor Harrell and Mike Yastrzemski. Harrell and Yastrzemski started all 66 games in center and right field, respectively.
As the recruiting coordinator at Vanderbilt, Jewett regularly produced some of the nation’s top classes. Twenty-five of Jewett’s pupils were drafted, including four first round picks. Of those 25 drafted, 12 were hitters.
Prior to Vanderbilt, Jewett spent the previous three years at Arizona State, where he oversaw the Sun Devils’ hitters and recruiting while serving as Associate Head Coach.
Jewett’s three seasons at Arizona State saw the Sun Devils go 131-48 (.732), including a trip to the College World Series in 2010 that ended with a loss to eventual champion South Carolina. The Sun Devils offense produced under Jewett, hitting over .300 as a team during his tenure and averaging nearly seven runs per game winning the Pac-10 league title in 2010 and hosting NCAA Regionals in each of his first two years.
The 2012 season saw Arizona State finish with a 36-20 mark, including an 18-12 record in the Pac-12. The Sun Devils hit 42 home runs and scored 339 runs with a .443 slugging percentage. The team finished the season winning 12 of its final 16 games. Joey DeMichele’s .336 average paced the team and Abe Ruiz led the way with 13 home runs. DeMichele and Deven Marrero were both selected as All-Pac-12 performers.
In 2011, the Sun Devils finished 43-18 with a 17-10 mark in Pac-10 play to finish second in the league. The squad hit .301 as a team led by DeMichele’s .368 average and nine home runs. Following the season five Sun Devils earned All-Pac 10 honors with Marrero being named the Defensive Player of the Year and DeMichele earning All-American status. As a team the Sun Devils led the Pac-10 in home runs (37), slugging percentage (.444) and stolen bases (99). Arizona State hosted and swept through the NCAA Regional before falling at Texas in the Super Regional round in three games.
Arizona State was a powerhouse in 2010 winning the Pac-10 title with a 20-7 mark and earning the top national seed in the NCAA Tournament. The team swept its way through Regionals and Super Regionals and into the school’s 22nd College World Series. Offensively, Jewett’s hitters posted a .337 team batting average while belting 68 home runs and scoring 520 runs. The club also swiped the third-most bases in school history with 136 steals.
His three-year stint at Arizona State saw 31 players drafted, including Marrero who was a first round pick of the Boston Red Sox in 2012. Of the 31 Sun Devils selected during Jewett’s tenure, 19 were position players.
From 2005-09, Jewett played an integral role in rejuvenating the Washington State program. He helped lead the Cougars from a 1-23 Pac-10 record in his first year to a 19-8 mark to finish second in the league in his final season in Pullman. The Cougars made their first trip to the NCAA Tournament in nearly 20 years in 2009, playing in the Norman, Oklahoma NCAA Regional. Jewett coached two Cougars to All-American honors and three earned All-Pac 10 recognition. One of those players to earn All-American and All-Pac 10 honors was Jay Miller, who broke the WSU school record for hits in a career with 307.
At Washington State, 15 Cougars were selected in the major league baseball draft during Jewett’s five seasons.
Prior to his five seasons in Pullman, Jewett spent 2002-04 in Seattle at Washington, where the Huskies went 114-65-2 in Jewett’s three seasons. He instructed the infielders and coached third base for the Huskies while helping lead the hitters. Nine players earned All-Pac 10 honors, including Tim Lincecum, with four players earning Freshman All-American accolades (Aaron Hathaway, Kyle Larsen, Brent Lillibridge and Lincecum).
The Huskies made the NCAA Tournament in each of Jewett’s three seasons (2002-04), reaching the Regional finals all three years. During his tenure with Washington, 17 Huskies were drafted by major league baseball.
Jewett broke into the Division I level at Gonzaga, where he in charge of the infield and coaching third base while assisting with the offense from 1999-2001. Eight players were named First Team All-West Coast Conference during Jewett’s time in Spokane with Barry Matthews earning All-American honors. Gonzaga won the WCC regular season title in Jewett’s final season after finishing second the previous two seasons.
With the Zags, Jewett saw four players be drafted in his three seasons.
Jewett began his collegiate coaching career at Tacoma Community College, first as an assistant in 1994 followed by two years as the head coach. He was the head coach at Edmonds (Wash.) Community College for two seasons, earning NWAACC Coach of the Year and National Junior College Coach of the Year honors in 1998.
Jewett is a 1993 graduate of Washington State. He played two seasons at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington, before finishing his degree at WSU, where he did not play baseball.
He and his wife, Tracy, have two sons, Tanner and Tommy.
