Jack Wallace Cook (July 27, 1926 – November 24, 2021) was an American baseball coach and player, serving two stints as head coach for the Marshall Thundering Herd baseball team 1955 and 1967–1989. In 1994, Cook was inducted into the Marshall University Athletics Hall of Fame for his career as a coach and player.[1]
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 27, 1926 Huntington, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | November 24, 2021 (aged 95) Huntington, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Marshall University |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1955 | Marshall |
| 1967–1989 | Marshall |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 422–344–3 |
| Tournaments | NCAA: 2–4 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| |
| Awards | |
| |
During his time at Marshall, he led the Thundering Herd to their first NCAA tournament in 1973.[2] Cook would led Marshall to the NCAA tournament again in 1978 whilst winning SoCon Coach of the Year.[3] Prior to his second stint at Marshall, Cook was the head baseball coach at Huntington High School in West Virginia.[4]
In 2023, it was announced that Marshall's new baseball stadium will be named Jack Cook Field in his honor.[5]
Head coaching record
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marshall Thundering Herd (Mid-American Conference) (1955) | |||||||||
| 1955 | Marshall | 2–11 | 1–6 | 8th | |||||
| Marshall Thundering Herd (Mid-American Conference) (1967–1969) | |||||||||
| 1967 | Marshall | 11–12 | 4–5 | 4th | |||||
| 1968 | Marshall | 18–7 | 5–4 | 3rd | |||||
| 1969 | Marshall | 14–12–1 | 7–7 | 3rd | |||||
| Marshall Thundering Herd (Independent) (1970–1976) | |||||||||
| 1970 | Marshall | 14–12 | |||||||
| 1971 | Marshall | 16–19 | |||||||
| 1972 | Marshall | 14–11 | |||||||
| 1973 | Marshall | 18–10 | NCAA Regional | ||||||
| 1974 | Marshall | 21–15 | |||||||
| 1975 | Marshall | 24–10 | |||||||
| 1976 | Marshall | 18–13 | |||||||
| Marshall Thundering Herd (Southern Conference) (1977–1989) | |||||||||
| 1977 | Marshall | 20–21 | 8–8 | 4th | |||||
| 1978 | Marshall | 27–13 | 11–1 | 1st | NCAA Regional | ||||
| 1979 | Marshall | 23–15–1 | 10–6 | 4th | |||||
| 1980 | Marshall | 17–11 | 10–3 | 2nd | |||||
| 1981 | Marshall | 22–17 | 12–4 | T–1st | |||||
| 1982 | Marshall | 17–21 | 8–8 | T–4th | |||||
| 1983 | Marshall | 19–14 | 7–7 | T–4th | |||||
| 1984 | Marshall | 11–16 | 5–8 | 3rd (North) | |||||
| 1985 | Marshall | 26–18–1 | 10–8 | 2nd (North) | |||||
| 1986 | Marshall | 15–18 | 4–13 | 4th (North) | |||||
| 1987 | Marshall | 16–17 | 5–7 | 3rd (North) | |||||
| 1988 | Marshall | 23–17 | 7–9 | 3rd (North) | |||||
| 1989 | Marshall | 16–14 | 8–5 | 2nd | |||||
| Marshall: | 422–344–3 | 122–109 | |||||||
| Total: | 422–344–3 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||