Steve Owens named head baseball coach at Rutgers

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University Athletics has officially announced that head baseball coach Steve Owens has accepted the same position at Rutgers University.

Owens has served as the head baseball coach for the past nine seasons, posting a record 327-184-2. The 327 victories are the most of any program in the Northeast in that span. 

"We are so grateful for the outstanding leadership Coach Owens has provided for our baseball program," Director of Athletics Bill Smith said. "Over the last nine years, Steve has built this program into one of the best in the Northeast and a program that is respected throughout the country. He not only delivered success on the field but developed high-character student-athletes that excelled in the classroom. A national search will begin immediately to find our next head coach that will build upon the strong foundation that Steve and our student-athletes have formed. The future of Bryant Baseball has never been brighter. We wish Steve all the best in his new position at Rutgers."

Owens has led the Black and Gold to eight-straight Northeast Conference Regular-Season titles, three NEC Tournament titles and three NCAA Tournaments over the last nine seasons. He was named the NEC Coach of the Year a league-record five times (2012, '13, '14, '16, '19) and the ABCA Northeast Region Coach of the Year in 2013 and 2014. Owens's teams won 30+ games in seven of his nine seasons and 40+ games on four occasions.

Owens produced 64 All-NEC selections, including four NEC Players of the Year, seven NEC Pitchers of the Year and seven NEC Rookies of the Year. He also produced 13 All-Americans in his nine seasons, including the 2018 Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Co-National Freshman Player of the Year.

Bryant has also become a breeding ground for professional talent, with 18 players taken in the MLB Draft in the last seven years. 

"I want to thank Coach Owens for the incredible job he has done in leading our baseball program for the past nine years," said President Ron Machtley. "He's led our program to eight-straight NEC Regular-Season titles, three NCAA Tournaments and the University's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory in 2013.

"He's recruited high-quality student-athletes that have represented our institution in a first-class manner and that have turned our program into one of the most successful programs in the country. I wish Coach Owens continued success at Rutgers."

Owens guided the Black and Gold to a 40-20 record and an appearance in the NEC Championship game in 2019. The Bulldogs set program and NEC records in home runs (81), hits (679), RBI (455) and runs scored (487). Bryant had eight named All-NEC, six named ABCA All-Region and three earned All-America honors. The Bulldogs also had three players drafted in the top 22 rounds of the 2019 MLB Draft.

Bryant reached new heights under Owens, winning more games over the last nine years than any other program in the Northeast. The 2016 season saw the Black and Gold win a program and NEC record 47 games. That season, Bryant led the country in winning percentage and run differential, and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The Bulldogs also won NEC titles in 2013 and 2014. In 2013, Bryant won a program-record 19-straight games and became the first team in Bryant's DI history to win an NCAA Tournament game when they defeated Arkansas in the Manhattan (Kan.) Regional.

"I would like to thank Bryant University for allowing me the privilege to have been the head coach of the baseball program for the past nine years," Owens said. "I have worked under tremendous leadership, which has allowed us to grow our program into one of the most successful in the entire region and well respected nationally. I would like to thank President Ron Machtley, Director of Athletics Bill Smith, Deputy Director of Athletics John Ruppert and Chairman of the Board Bill Conaty for all that they have done for me both personally and professionally. I have had tremendous players and coaches who have been totally committed each and every year and have accomplished great things together. I am 100% confident that the program is in perfect shape and ready to stay on the same path of excellence. I will cherish my time in Smithfield and the solid relationships that I have built and carry them with me into a new era. I wish the entire Bulldog family the absolute best of luck…I thank you all from the bottom of my heart."

A national search for the next head coach will begin immediately.