Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 10 No. 5 | May 2018

“ ” I ’ve been to a lot of schools and I’ve been to all the ACC schools pretty much, and I still think this is the most beautiful campus on the East Coast. I really believe that. That was one part that really sold it for me. Connor Coward on his decision to come to Tech M ost collegiate student-athletes find themselves immersed in their sports, and even their off-field or off-court hobbies center somewhat on that. Yet occasionally, one finds that student-athlete with some rather eclectic interests. Say someone who plugs his earphones in and listens to podcasts on politics and philosophy instead of music or sports while walking across the Drillfield to class. Or someone who dreams of salmon fishing in Alaska. Or someone who wants to learn to play the electric guitar. Perhaps someone who loves listening to Tom Petty and collects his vinyl records—even though Petty’s first album was released 20 years before this person’s birth. “I’m an old soul,” Connor Coward admitted. Which, of course, is perfectly fine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being good at your sport and interesting to boot. Hokie Nation knows Coward as the anchor of the Virginia Tech pitching staff in the first year of the John Szefc era, and with seemingly each passing outing, Coward makes more of a name for himself. He leads the Hokies in practically every pitching category, which provides the evidence for the theory that his 2-5 record is more a reflection of run support than his actual pitching. That he pitches so well often surprises Major League Baseball scouts when they watch him. After all, he only stands around 6-foot and weighs around 200 pounds (think Greg Maddux), and he only occasionally touches 90 miles per hour on the radar guns. He serves as a contradiction for the sought-after mold of a future big leaguer—6-5, 220 and bringing the gas at 95 mph-plus. Yet Coward simply does exactly what his coaches want most of the time—he gets guys out. Perhaps some of that comes from his native Pittsburgh disposition, that gritty toughness inherent in those who come from the Steel City and therefore embrace a bulldog mentality. Perhaps it comes from genetics, as his father played college basketball at Grove City College, a small school north of Pittsburgh. Whatever the reason, this season isn’t a fluke. Coward got ACC hitters out last year, too. “I would just say knowing that I’m good enough to be here,” Coward explained of his success. “That was something that I struggled with, my first year, especially. I just didn’t have the confidence to go in there and say, ‘Hey, these guys aren’t Babe Ruth. They’re college kids, just like me. They’re looking to meet girls and have fun on the weekends and go out and be a regular kid.’ “Once I got over that, I thought, ‘Hey, I can pitch with these guys if I can work both halves of the plate. I don’t need to be perfect every single pitch.’ I think that helped me with my confidence a lot.” Coward never lacked such confidence before, especially when he played at Seneca Valley High School in Pittsburgh. A tremendous golfer, he decided to focus on baseball instead, and he made the varsity team as a sophomore at the critical position of shortstop. He moved to the mound as a junior when the team’s ace hurt himself—and he alternated between the two positions the rest of his career. He received interest from a lot of schools, but never really considered himself an ACC player. When recruiters made trips to Seneca Valley, they came to watch Sam Fragale, the team’s slugger and top position player. Coward had not heard of Virginia Tech until Fragale, a year older than him, committed to the Hokies. “Really, I never focused much on college baseball,” Coward said. “In high school, I didn’t follow it much. When he committed to Virginia Tech, I thought, ‘Good for Sam! He’s a heckuva player. He deserves that.’ I didn’t think I was that caliber of a baseball player just because Sam had been the guy for so long.” Unlike a lot of baseball players who simply view college as a means to professional baseball, Coward viewed college more traditionally—as an avenue to his long-term future. Business intrigued him as much as baseball, and engineering, too. Virginia Tech eventually afforded him the opportunity to combine all his favorites. Previous Tech head coach Pat Mason and pitching coach Robert Woodard started showing as much interest in him as they had shown in Fragale and entered into the mix for his services. Though friends and neighbors, Coward and Fragale were not a package deal. Continued on page 32 30 Inside Hokie Sports