COACH DAVE SCHMOTZER, coker cobras

Coker College Head Coach Dave Schmotzer traces his roots back to one of America's great cities - a blue collar town with a rich baseball history, Cleveland, Ohio. These days, the former TCU assistant has left the home of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to hang his hat in the considerably less rockin' town of Hartsville, South Carolina. Now entering his 18th season at the helm of the Cobras, Schmotzer and the program are closing in on quincentennial win number 500. Along the way he has guided Coker to five Conference Championships, two NAIA regionals and the 1994 NAIA World Series. Those familiar with Coach Schmotzer's program know he is one of the most colorful people in all of baseball. A quick witted theologian, dedicated educator and a die-hard music fan are just a few aspects of his dynamic character.

Ping!Baseball recently reacquainted with Coach Schmotzer to discuss some of the financial hurdles of Division II baseball, the recent success of the Conference Carolinas and the Cobras upcoming 2010 season.

Ping!Baseball: Some of the teams in the conference and the region aren't funded as much as others. What challenges does that create for programs that don't have as many scholarships to offer?

Schmotzer: That all depends about who you are, if you want to go cry about it then go cry about it. If you're looking for success based on whether or not you have financial aid you're in the wrong business. You take what is given to you and you do the best that you can.

Ping!Baseball: At Coker what have you done to combat this? How have you remained competitive over the years?

Schmotzer: It's really harder to enhance the wonderful experience that a young man may have playing college baseball if he's losing all the time. Those goals seem to get retarded and it is harder for them to buy in to what you're selling (if you're not winning). The wins and the losses, they dissipate as time goes on. What's left for these guys is the experience.

Ping!Baseball: One advantage you have is mild weather. Do you use this lure players from up north?

Schmotzer: When you look at the roster we have kids from all over the country. One of those decision factors is certainly geographic location. Probably the biggest factor is the player-coach relationship and then right after that is the opportunity to come in and play. But right under that is the geography, where are you located.

Ping!Baseball: The recent success of the Conference Carolinas with Belmont Abbey last season in the semi-finals and Mount Olive winning it all in 2008, is that a good thing or a bad thing for a program like Coker?

Schmotzer: It's wonderful. The race that we run over here at Coker is not with Belmont Abbey or Mount Olive. With all do respect to those guys, the race that we run is with ourselves and that's not a cop-out either. It's what we teach: to go and cross the river and gain that experience that you're gonna need when you leave here. You learn a lot more by not having a good day then you do by having all good days.

Ping!Baseball: Speaking of success, who do the Peach Belt and the South Atlantic Conference need to look out for this year from the Conference Carolinas?

Schmotzer: It's almost understood that Carl (Lancaster) has it goin' over there (at Mount Olive). Really he has never had a bad year since I've been here. They do well over there. They get the kids. It's a really competitive conference and there are just no weak links anymore. People get after it here and the coaches are great people and educators.

Ping!Baseball: The 2010 edition of the Cobras, how are they going to improve this season?

Schmotzer: My number one goal today is to go have a good practice. My next goal is to have another good one tomorrow. We just keep on trying to learn how to execute the game under pressure. Do I have that type of club that's going to be able to do it this year? That's why we play the games. Call me in April and I'll tell you for sure.

Ping!Baseball: Who can we expect to have a breakout year for Coker this year?

Schmotzer: Matt Ammons is fourth year senior at second base who has been loyal, honest and patient. He has been superb this year. He has been a part-time guy up until this point. He's a 6.8-6.9 runner, he's got wisdom for the game and he is a guy that should have a really outstanding year. Trey Lynch is another guy. If those two guys do well then that means Coker baseball is doing pretty good.

Ping!Baseball: Coach, I've got two tickets with back stage passes to any concert you want. Who do you go to see and who are you taking with you?

Schmotzer: Hands down, Ian Hunter, former lead singer for the band Mott the Hoople. This guy is 70 years old and I just saw him in New York City last summer. The second is Bruce (Springstein) and Jerry Jeff Walker…. Those are my guys, then the Stones. There is such an analogy between music and baseball. You can't be just pretty good at being an entertainer; you have to be good every day. It's the same thing in baseball; you can't just be pretty good some days….you have to be pretty good every day. Oh, and who comes with me to the concert? If I'm not trying to scalp the thing for loot I would take my brother (identical twin brother and Coker basketball coach) Dan.