This week On Deck we talk with the head coach at Southeastern Louisiana University, Rick Fremin. Fremin is in his fourth season as head coach at SELU and has compiled a record 0f 103-93 while quickly turning the program around. He has led SELU from a team at the bottom of the Southland Conference in 2016, all the way to a second place finish in 2018. Fremin took over the program in the summer of 2015 after spending the previous five seasons at Jackson State University where he compiled an outstanding SWAC record of 67-16 in route to winning three East Division Championships. In his first season at JSU he also led the program to an NCAA Regional Appearance. Before his stint at JSU he served as head coach at his Alma Mater Belhaven University where he compiled a 186-95 record while making the programs first NAIA National Tournament appearance in 2010. Fremin also had coaching stops as an assistant at Millsaps College and head coach at Belle Chase High School.
Lee Dobbins: Coach Fremin you took over a program at Southeastern Louisiana that had not seen a lot of success as of late before your arrival. You have consistently made strides in each of your four years, making the biggest jump last year with 38 wins. What have been the keys in turning the program around and changing the culture of the program to see the success it is now?
Rick Fremin: It has been a process because my first year we finished 12th, my second year we finished 6th, and this past season we finished 2nd. I told administration on the interview that I was coming here to do what’s never been done before. We have been blessed with the highest academic GPA (3.4) in program history, highest community service hours, and highest finish in conference. It has been so important to find players that are passionate about the game and willing to develop has been so key. We have also completed several projects such as- painting the facility, new cages, chair-back seats, turf infield, new outfield fence, installed 10 bull-pens, new pitching machines, and LED lighting. I have tried my best to put an aggressive team on the field from day 1 and as a result I believe that has helped tremendously in so many areas, such as recruiting. Some of our teams have broken school records and others have led the NCAA in several statistical categories.
Dobbins: Having already been a head coach at a “mid-major” type institution before coming to SELU; what do you find is the biggest challenges to winning and winning consistently at that level? What are the strategies you use in drawing the better athletes to a mid-major to make that happen?
Fremin: Well I think everyone is better now, then say 10 years ago. Athletic Departments have invested in the sport and made good hires to where a lot of programs across the country are in a good position. Wins are harder to come by. You have to take every game with a professional mindset, because if you don’t this game will humble you. I typically try to find athletes that are a good fit for our program. I do my best to convey to the athletes that I will try to get them to play at the highest level possible. I really enjoy when they accomplish goals that they never imagined.
Dobbins: Over the last few years recruiting has been a major topic of conversation particularly when it comes to the average (young) age that Prospective Student Athletes are being recruited and making verbal commitments to programs. Legislation has now been initiated restricting contact/offers to PSAs until the start of their junior years in high school. Talk a bit about that change in the recruiting dynamic since that legislation has been adopted. Has it slowed the process and made balancing recruiting better? Has the legislation been effective in curving earlier recruiting in any way?
Fremin: I do feel it has changed. I think that it has slowed some things down. We did a lot of work prior to the new rule, so we are not being effected just yet by the changes. I do believe a lot of programs, including us, will feel these changes in the next two years after some of the early verbals dwindle down. I think the legislation has been somewhat effective, however I did not vote in favor of the new legislation. I am against any rule that “restricts”.
Dobbins: I recently heard a phrase directly referenced to collegiate softball; “The era of the free agent has begun.” This seemingly is referencing the latest NCAA Transfer Legislation that eliminates the permission-to-contact process. The transfer rates in the last five years had seemingly already been at an all-time high. Recently however, it seems the flood gates have opened directly connected with this legislation. What are your thoughts on this legislation and its effect on the collegiate game?
Fremin: I preferred the old legislation. I also feel there is now a lack of commitment on both sides, players and coaches. As result the game is effected in numerous ways. Ex- a program loses it “top player” to another program and that program who helped develop the player feels the impact the following season of that player leaving.
Dobbins: Softball (Collegiate Game particularly) has boomed in popularity in the last 10 years and this seems to be based on its visibility on different media outlets (TV, online, Social Media, etc.). How has that dynamic of visibility has changed the way the game is played and how you run your program? What is the next progression of promotion of the game/advancement would you like to see as a Head Coach?
Fremin: Media has definitely helped grow the game tremendously over the last 10 years and I am grateful for that. I would like to see the promotion of the sport focus on the fundamentals particularly at the lower levels. I think the fundamentals are getting lost in the times of “See you Saturday, we have a jersey for you”. I think players are just showing up to parks in all age groups and just playing. In my opinion very few players are being taught the fundamentals of the game. We as college coaches can promote and help with that so that we all continue to enjoy the great game of softball!