Biggs crowned 2024 GCAC Coach of the Year

JACKSON, Miss. - After leading the Wiley University baseball team to its first conference title in 41 years, head coach Kendrick Biggs was selected as the 2024 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, the conference announced Thursday during its award ceremony between games at the 2024 Hope Credit Union GCAC Baseball Championship.

The GCAC Head coaches voted for the award. Biggs led the Wildcats to a 24-17 record, including 18-3 in GCAC play. They won six of seven GCAC series, sweeping five of them.

"It's very nice to earn this honor," Biggs said. "I'm humbled to gain the respect of the other coaches in our conference."

The journey to this point for Biggs was paved with challenges. In his first six seasons, he had to guide the Wildcats through the Red River Athletic Conference, which annually produced three to four Top 25 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics programs. Two years ago, he was tasked with building the baseball program back up. Wiley opted not to compete during the first year of the coronavirus. With two classes graduating and several players transferring, only five players who competed in 2020 returned.

"I had 55 freshmen and asked them to trust the process," Biggs said. "We had to go through a lot but it feels great to see the ones, who stuck with it get rewarded for their hard work."

Those freshmen only won five of 47 games in their first season. Most of them have played an instrumental role in Wiley's success in the past two seasons. Next spring, Biggs will take on the challenge of restarting Wiley University's softball program, which hasn't competed in over 20 years. Joining the coaching staff as an assistant coach in 2013, Biggs has been elevated to the Associate Athletic Director of Compliance.

For more coverage on the Wildcats visit Baseball - Wiley University (wileyathletics.com)

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