Geidel resigns baseball post, will transition to enrollment management role
SEWARD, Neb. – Sixteen-year Concordia University head baseball coach Jeremy Geidel announced Monday that he has resigned his post. Currently the second-longest tenured head coach at Concordia, Geidel will conclude his duties as baseball coach on July 31 and then transition to the role of Director of Enrollment Management Initiatives at Concordia. The 1996 graduate began his tenure as head baseball coach in 1998-99.
“I’ve been blessed to have the opportunity to work with and build relationships with so many outstanding young men over the years,” Geidel said. “I appreciate Concordia University supporting me and providing the chance to come back to my alma mater.
“For 16 seasons my family has allowed me to ‘live a dream’ and spend time building a baseball program and making relationships with hundreds of student-athletes. Their support and understanding over the years has been nothing but selfless. Therefore, it is important that I look to give my wife and four growing children more of my time and dedication, especially while the opportunities to do so continue to increase.”
Added Director of Athletics Devin Smith:
“I thank Jeremy for his service and dedication to the Concordia baseball program and the athletic department over the past 16 years. Jeremy has been an asset to our university and will continue to be in his new role in enrollment management.”
Taking over a program that had struggled mightily in seasons prior to his arrival, Geidel helped make the Bulldogs competitive within the GPAC and finished his career with 250 victories. His 2005 squad broke a school record for conference wins by going 15-9 in GPAC play. Then in 2012, Geidel’s squad set the current program standard by racking up 25 overall victories. Geidel was named the 2000 Nebraska-Iowa Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Bulldogs to an 11-11 league mark just two years after the team went 2-23 overall (the season before Geidel’s hiring).
Some of the top players during Geidel’s 16-year run included Concordia Athletics Hall of Famer Jarrod Pimentel, the program’s all-time home run leader, as well as 2012 senior athlete of the year Zak Goodrich, the school’s all-time hits leader.
At the outset of his head coaching career, Concordia had a roster of 24 players. By 2014, the program featured 60 student-athletes and a well-established junior varsity program initiated by Geidel. The native of Loveland, Colo., also served as Assistant Athletic Director for a number of years, assisting with many strategic initiatives that led to the success of several Bulldog programs during his tenure in this administrative role.
The veteran head coach has also served on a number of national committees. From 2000 to the present, Geidel has been a member of the NAIA-BCA Rules Committee and was formerly part of the NAIA-BCA Academic All-American Committee. He worked as part of the 2006 NAIA World Series Games Committee and, since 1998, Geidel has been a member of the American Baseball Coaches' Association.
Geidel succeeded at building tight-knit teams within a family atmosphere. Four-year assistant coach John Couch, who played for Geidel, called his head coach a second father. Current Bulldog standouts Daniel Wilkerson and Andrew Yerrell have also credited Geidel for aiding their blossoming on the playing field.
Jeremy and his wife Amanda live in Seward with their four children.
The position of head baseball coach will soon be posted. All Concordia University faculty and staff openings can be viewed here: https://cune.applicantpro.com/jobs/.