Friday afternoon was Coach Scott Foxhall’s first day back in the media room at Auburn in five years, and he had nothing but good things to say about the university that gave him his first start.
“I’m very grateful to be back. Auburn has always had a special place in my heart," Foxhall said. "Both my parents went here. I’ve had a couple stints here before. I went to school here, played for Coach (Hal) Baird. It’s been great being back. Our current staff, the people we have on this staff, are second to none in the coaching realm but also as human beings. So, it’s just been fun coming to work every day with these guys, so I’m very grateful to be back at Auburn.”
Foxhall, who has 29 years of collegiate coaching experience, has come back after five years at Mississippi State as the pitching coach to be the new director of player development. He was brought back to impact the recruitment process and mentor his players and fellow coaches around him. One coach that’s felt that impact is pitching coach Everett Teaford himself.
“I don’t think we have enough time to really be able to truly articulate how fortunate and lucky and blessed I’ve been to have him,” Teaford said. “When we were talking about hiring him, I told Butch I was like 'yes, he fills in my gaps on not having been in the college ranks.' I’ve been so dang lucky to have him as a sounding board when things are good, when things are bad, when things are in the middle, so I can’t thank him enough for the help and guidance that he has given me.”
Coming from a winning program in Mississippi State, Foxhall brings that experience of being part of a College World Series championship team and has what it takes to get there. He’s coached multiple pitchers who’ve been drafted in the MLB and had successful careers.
Foxhall spoke of the similarities between the two programs and how that has made an impact on the winning culture Auburn has had under Coach Butch Thompson.
“It’s culture," Foxhall said. "Like we talked about with the facilities, Auburn is in good hands, the facilities in good hands because John Cohen’s here and he’s got vision. He’s a great leader. He brought a lot of the best people from Mississippi State to Auburn, to help continue to build this culture. So, I see it every day, and as we all know Butch came from that culture. And we know his first eight years has brought that over here, and I see a lot of the similarities why Mississippi State had a strong baseball program prevalent in the Auburn culture now."
His return can only be a well added complement to an Auburn baseball team that needs all the experience and veteran leadership it can get.
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William Halliday started with The Plainsman in fall 2022. He is a journalism major from Memphis, Tennessee.
Twitter: @wphalliday3
