Link Jarrett, a two-time National Coach of the Year at Notre Dame and a 1994 Florida State graduate, was named the 10th head baseball coach in FSU history on June 24, 2022. Having coached FSU to back-to-back NCAA Super Regional appearances, and a berth in the College World Series in 2024, the Tallahassee native has 13 years of head coaching experience and has led teams to the College World Series in two of the last four years, at Florida State in 2024 and at Notre Dame in 2022, which was just UND’s third CWS berth in school history. In the last five years, Jarrett is the only NCAA D-I coach to reach two Super Regionals and a College World Series at two different schools, achieving the feat at Notre Dame in 2021-22 and at FSU in 2024-25.

For his career, Jarrett is 415-262 with five NCAA Tournament appearances. He is 114-64 in three years at FSU, becoming the sixth coach in team history to eclipse the 100-win mark and the fourth to do it in his third season.

The son of the legendary FSU baseball coach, Mike Martin Jr. succeeded his father as head coach in 2020. Martin Jr. had played catcher for the Seminoles in the 1990s and, after a brief career in the minor leagues, served as an assistant coach for the Seminoles in the 2000s and 2010s. Over his three seasons as head coach, Martin Jr. posted a 77-54 record.

Mike Martin capped his 40-year head coaching career at Florida State in 2019 with his 40th NCAA Tournament appearance, his 40th winning season and his 17th College World Series appearance, tied for the most all-time. Martin is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA history, for any sport, finishing his career with a 2,029-736-4 record. 

A man whose uniform number – 11 – was universally substituted among FSU faithful, Martin is a member of the Florida Sports Hall of Fame (inducted 2005), the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame (2007) and his home-state North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame (2018). After his retirement in 2019, he was inducted into the Florida State Athletics Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association named its Coach of the Year trophy in his honor. In 2024, Martin was recognized by the ABCA with the Lefty Gomez Award, presented to “an individual who has distinguished himself amongst his peers and has contributed significantly to the game of baseball locally, nationally and internationally.” 

Born February 12, 1944, in Charlotte, North Carolina, Martin graduated from Garinger High School before spending two years at Wingate Junior College, where he first met the former Carol Dellinger. Accompanied by Carol, the pair moved to Tallahassee when Martin enrolled at Florida State as a junior. After helping lead the Seminoles to the 1965 College World Series and the NCAA Tournament in 1966, Martin earned his undergraduate degree in 1966 and his Master’s degree in 1971. 

Mike and Carol married and remained in Tallahassee for the next 60 years. 

After coaching stints at Cobb Middle School, Godby High School and Tallahassee Community College, Martin was hired by Woody Woodward as FSU’s assistant coach prior to the 1975 season. After four seasons with Woodward and one under Dick Howser, Martin was promoted to the head job in the fall of 1979 after Howser was hired away to manage the New York Yankees. 

Martin earned the first of his 17 College World Series appearances in 1980. He took the Seminoles three more times in the 1980s, seven times in the 1990s, twice in the 2000s and four times over his final decade, including his final year in 2019. 

Florida State won 19 conference titles under Martin’s leadership and he was a 13-time conference Coach of the Year. He was the National Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2019. 

Martin had 20 players selected in the first round of the MLB Draft and 60 former players reached the Major Leagues.

Dick Howser’s name is synonymous with major league baseball, but his place in Florida State’s Hall of Fame was secured by his outstanding play as a shortstop from 1956-58. Howser led the Seminoles to the District III playoffs each year and to the 1957 College World Series. He became FSU’s first All-America baseball player in 1957 and repeated the feat in 1958. He went on to play professionally with Kansas City, Cleveland, and the New York Yankees. He then moved quickly into coaching and eventually managing the N.Y. Yankees and winning a World Series Championship as the manager of the Kansas City Royals. A national award is presented annually to the nation’s top college baseball player which is named after Howser as is FSU’s baseball stadium.

For two years as a player and four years as a coach, Woody Woodward led the Florida State baseball team. The shortstop from Coral Gables led FSU at the plate in 1962 with a .365 average. The following season, he was chosen third team All-American and was named to the College World Series all-tournament squad. From 1962 to 1971, Woodward played for the Braves and Reds. After retirement as a professional, he returned to Tallahassee and coached FSU from 1975 to 1978, winning 75 percent of his games over the four year span. Three of his FSU teams earned NCAA bids and the 1975 team advanced to the College World Series. After his FSU career, Woodward returned to professional baseball where he served as general manager of several clubs.

After a successful career as a player and coach at Wake Forest, Jack Stallings was named head coach of the Seminoles in 1969. In 1970, Stallings led FSU to their fourth College World Series appearance in program history. FSU finished runner-up to Southern California, marking the team’s best CWS finish to date. Stallings ultimately won more than 1,200 games as a coach for Wake Forest, FSU and Georgia Southern. His .695 winning percentage over seven seasons in Tallahassee remains one of the best in program history.

Though he only coached the Florida State baseball team for five years, Fred Hatfield’s impact on the program has been felt long after his departure. A standout baseball player, Hatfield broke into the Major Leagues with the Boston Red Sox and played professionally from 1950-57. He then went into managing at the minor league level before being selected as Florida State’s head coach in 1964.

Hatfield wasted no time in keeping Florida State’s winning tradition going as he guided the ’64 Seminoles to a 23-13 record and a No. 6 final national ranking. In his second season, FSU won the NCAA District III Championship and advanced to the third round of the College World Series, finishing fifth nationally. Over the next three years (1966-68), his teams represented FSU at the NCAA District III playoffs. Hatfield went 35-6, his final year, and that winning percentage of .854 ranked as the best single-season winning percentage at the time of his induction.

Hatfield was instrumental in a number of projects for FSU baseball including spearheading the effort to install lights at the baseball stadium. To get the ‘Noles under the lights, Hatfield called on a number of his friends from his years in professional baseball.

After leaving FSU following the 1968 season, Hatfield went back into professional ball where he coached and scouted until 1997.

Hatfield put together a record of 161-57 during his five-year tenure at Florida State. That winning percentage of .737 ranks third all-time at FSU behind only Woody Woodward and Mike Martin, who was a centerfielder for Hatfield from 1965-66.

Florida State University’s reputation as a national baseball power is due in large part to Danny Litwhiler, the coach who first brought the Seminoles national acclaim. From 1955 to 1963, Litwhiler posted a record of 188-82, winning 70 percent of his games. Three times he took FSU to the College World Series and seven times Litwhiler’s teams went to the NCAA regionals. Among the great players developed by Litwhiler were FSU Hall of Famers Dick Howser and Woody Woodward. While in Tallahassee, Litwhiler also made great contributions to teenage recreation. From 1940 through 1951, he starred in the National League with the Phils, Cards, Braves, and Reds. He became head coach at Michigan State in 1964.

Ralph Matherly served as the second coach in FSU baseball history, compiling a 43-22-1 record over three seasons. An Air Force veteran, Matherly came to Florida State after World War II to earn his master’s degree in science. In addition to his role as head coach of the baseball team, Matherly was also a tennis coach, assistant football coach and athletic director.

Charlie Armstrong started the FSU baseball program from scratch. Although the City of Tallahassee’s Centennial Field, formerly a professional minor league facility was available occasionally for games, FSU had to have a place to practice and play when that venue was not available, so a baseball field had to be built. A site on FSU’s West Campus (land and facilities being temporarily utilized by the university which had been the site of the former World War II Dale Mabry Field air base) was chosen and work began. A call went out to the student body for players to report and soon the team was practicing. A limited amount of money was made available for uniforms and some equipment but the players individually had to provide their own shoes and gloves. Armstrong, only a couple of years older than a number of players, as they were military veterans also, had to learn as he went. Some of the more knowledgeable players helped with the coaching of others. Soon they were playing. They won their first game against Mississippi College and went on to a 9 win and 8 loss first season, establishing the tradition that continues to exist in that FSU baseball has never had a losing season.