John Cohen's Accomplishments are Nothing Short of Extraordinary

After a memorable season filled with both happy and sad tears, Mississippi State's John Cohen was recognized as a finalist for CollegeBaseballInsider.com's 2013 National Coach of the Year Award. It is a well-deserved honor for a man who, in five seasons, has taken MSU Baseball from a 25-29 overall record to 51-20 and within two games of a national championship.

Cohen led the Bulldogs to their first 50 win season since Cohen himself was in uniform under Ron Polk in 1990, and he is also the 13th coach to reach the CWS after also playing in the CWS.

After a short time with the Minnesota Twins' farm system, 12 seasons in an assistant or head coaching capacity, and five seasons as the head coach at the University of Kentucky, Cohen returned to Starkville in 2008 with 17 seasons of collegiate coaching experience under his belt, serving nine of those as a collegiate head coach. Including his time with MSU, Cohen has accomplished overall record of 766-514-2 and a head coaching record of 498-328-1.

Since Cohen's arrival, 21 Diamond Dogs have been drafted in the Major League Baseball draft. That number includes two first round draft picks: Chris Stratton (San Francisco Giants), and Hunter Renfroe (San Diego Padres).

Outside of his accomplishments, Cohen is a beloved member of the Bulldog community and in unison with his team, has certainly made this past season one for the books which in my mind makes him Mississippi State's Coach of the Year.