Eric Newman

 

Alma Mater Texas Tech, 1997
Master’s Degree Dallas Baptist, 2005

Coaching Honors
One College World Series Appearance
Two NCAA Regional Appearances
Three Big Eight Tournament Appearances
One NAIA National Championship
Five NAIA Regional Championships
Eleven NAIA District Championships

Coaching Experience
Nebraska, Assistant Coach 2007-present
Dallas Baptist, Head Coach 2005-07
Dallas Baptist, Assistant Coach 2002-05
Vero Beach Dodgers (Florida State League), Player-Coach 2002

Playing Experience
Minor League Baseball 1994-2002
Texas Tech  1994
Fresno State 1992-93

Personal Information
Date of Birth Aug. 27, 1972
Wife Melissa
Family Wife: Melissa; Son: EJ

 

Eric Newman is in his fourth season as Nebraska's pitching coach after joining the staff on July 2, 2007. Newman came to Nebraska after five years at Dallas Baptist, serving the last three seasons as head coach of the Patriots program.

Newman made an immediate impact in his first season at Nebraska in 2008, as the Husker pitchers played a major role in advancing to an NCAA Regional for the ninth time in 10 years. He took a staff that had just 14 returning wins and guided the Huskers to 41 wins and a No. 1 regional seed. On the season, NU led the Big 12 in complete games (seven) and ranked among league leaders in saves (17, second), strikeouts (491, third) and ERA (4.18, third). The 491 strikeouts by the NU hurlers were the most since 2005, while the 8.46 strikeouts per game established a school mark. The staff was led by two-time All-American Johnny Dorn as well as Big 12 selections Thad Weber and Dan Jennings, while five Huskers were selected in the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft, including third-round pick Aaron Pribanic (Seattle) and Jennings, who was taken by the Florida Marlins in the ninth round.  Dorn (15th, Florida), Weber (16th, Detroit) and Zach Herr (38th, San Diego) rounded out the draftees, as only Weber had been selected previously in the MLB Draft. While at Nebraska, Newman has had a total of 10 pitchers drafted in only three years. He will coach four drafted pitchers in 2011, including a trio of talented freshmen who are beginning their collegiate careers.

Newman came to Nebraska after serving as head coach at Dallas Baptist University for three seasons. He guided the  school to a 95-72 record, while guiding the program through its transition to the Division I ranks.

During the two years the Patriots were eligible for NCAA Division I individual awards, Dallas Baptist had one Collegiate Baseball All-American (Drew Holder) and 14 players named to the All-Independent Team. For his efforts, Newman was named Independent Coach of the Year in 2006. Newman coaches at least one player who was invited to Team USA summer tryouts in three of his four seasons at the school (Lance Broadway in 2004, Austin Krum in 2006 and Black in 2007) and a total of 15 players - including eight pitchers - selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft or signed professional free agent contacts.

Newman began his Dallas Baptist career as the school's pitching coach in 2002, a position he held for two seasons before being named head coach. In his time as an assistant, he lowered the team ERA from 5.80 in 2002 to 3.28 in two seasons. Their 3.28 team ERA in 2004 would have ranked seventh nationally except for DBU's provisional Division I status.

That season, he produced a pair of 10-game winners in Broadway and Jeff Gilmore. Broadway, a finalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and Roger Clemens Award in 2005, would eventually become a first-round pick of the Chicago White Sox and reached the Major Leagues in 2007. Three of Newman's Dallas Baptist pitchers earned National Pitcher-of-the-Week honors, while his staffs have thrown a perfect game and three no-hitters since the start of the 2003 season.

Newman also brings expertise from the professional ranks, as he served as player-coach for the Single-A affiliate Vero Beach Dodgers in 2002. He played professionally for a total of eight seasons, including stints in the San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, and Arizona Diamondbacks organizations.

Newman spent two years playing collegiate baseball at Fresno State prior to transferring to Texas Tech in 1993. He played for the Red Raiders one year before being chosen in the fifth round of the MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres in 1994.

Newman graduated from Texas Tech with a bachelor's degree in family studies in 1997, and completed his master's degree in higher education at Dallas Baptist in 2005. Eric and his wife Melissa have a 3-year-old son, EJ.