Brett Harker, Furman Paladins

Brett Harker has made an incredible rise through the coaching ranks in a short period of time. A native of Greenville, South Carolina, Harker was named head coach of the Furman Paladins last summer at the age of 31. He grew up near the Furman University campus and graduated from Hillcrest High School in 2002. He then attended the College of Charleston and became one of the top pitchers in college baseball. He earned All-Southern Conference honors as a sophomore and junior and was named the Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year as well as an All-American in 2005. That same year he was drafted in the fifth round by the Philadelphia Phillies and proceeded to pitch professionally for the next seven years. At the end of his playing days, he started coaching high school in Greenville before joining Division II Newberry College as a pitching. He then spent the 2015 and 2016 campaigns as the pitching coach at Furman and also was named recruiting coordinator of the Paladins. Harker has attracted praise from his players for his ability to teach the game, which helped current Furman junior Will Gaddis earn Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year accolades in 2016.

In the podcast with College Baseball Now, Harker talks about his career as well as the reward he feels as a coach. He tries to pass on the things he learned during his college days to his players, and also says that coaches today need to learn how to communicate with the current generation of players. He explains how coaching at the high school, Division II and Division I levels helped prepare him for his current job with the Paladins, which includes much more than pitch selection and offensive plays. Harker also says he believes the 2017 Paladins’ strengths will be its pitching staff as well as its veteran lineup that has high expectations entering the campaign.