CLEVELAND, Miss. -- The Delta State University baseball program will retire former head baseball coach Mike Kinnison's No. 15 jersey in a ceremony on Saturday, April 24 at Harvey Stadium-Ferriss Field prior to the 2 p.m. doubleheader against the University of Alabama in Huntsville.  
 
Kinnison guided the Statesmen to the 2004 NCAA Division II national title, six College World Series appearances (2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2017), 15 NCAA South Regional appearances (1999-2005, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019), 11 GSC Western Division titles (1997-2005, 2007-2008), six NCAA South/South Central Regional championships and seven Gulf South Conference titles in his tenure as Statesmen skipper.
 
In 2004, he earned the ABCA "National Coach of the Year" award after leading the Statesmen to the program's first-ever NCAA Division II National Championship. He has also been named the Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year nine times, including three back-to-back selections and appropriately named "Coach of the Decade" by the GSC in 2010 and 2019.

Kinnison, a 2010 inductee into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, accomplished an unbelievable career record of 981-313-1 (.756), averaging 42.5 wins per season as head coach. His all-time career record, including high school, is an astounding 1,229-380-2 (.768). He also coached three American Baseball Coaches Association National Players of the Year, as Dee Haynes (2000), Jud Thigpen (2004) and two-time recipient Zack Shannon (2017, 2018) earned the honor.

The Statesmen claimed a 3-2 win over Ouachita Baptist on Feb. 9, 2018, to notch Kinnison's 900th win while the 42-11 record in 2018 was the 14th 40-plus win season for Kinnison.
 
Before taking over as head coach, Kinnison served as an assistant coach for three seasons under Bill Marchant. Kinnison was an important component to the 1994 and 1996 teams, who accomplished trips to the Gulf South Conference Championships and the College World Series. In his three years as an assistant, the Statesmen compiled an impressive 138-36 (.793) record.
 
The Benton, Miss., native was a standout shortstop for the legendary Dave "Boo" Ferris from 1977-1978. Kinnison garnered ABCA Second Team All-American honors during the 1978 season. In that same year, he batted .343 with 25 doubles and 56 RBIs in leading the Statesmen to a second-place finish at the NCAA College World Series. Kinnison held the single-season record for doubles (25-tied) before Will Robertson had 28 in 2016 and previously held the record for most games played (62) in a season.
 
Before returning to his alma mater, Kinnison was an accomplished high school coach in Mississippi. He coached at Lee Academy (1979-81), Jackson Prep (1982-92), and Madison Central (1993). He claimed three Mississippi Private School Association State Championships at Jackson Prep in 1982, 1990, and 1991. During his prep head-coaching career, Kinnison achieved an overall record of 292-83 (.779).
 
Kinnison earned his bachelor's degree in mathematics education in 1977 from Delta State University. He later earned a master's degree in mathematics education from DSU in 1978.

Kinnison is married to the former Cindy Colbert of Grenada. They are the proud parents of Mary Claire and Kate, both graduates of Delta State University, and they have six grandchildren. Mary Claire has two sons, Bowen, and Sam, and a daughter Annie, while Kate has three daughters, Hannah, Libby, and Claire. Mike and Cindy reside in Cleveland.
 
Tickets for the weekend series against Alabama-Huntsville can be purchased on the ticket links https://deltastatetickets.universitytickets.com or by calling (662) 846-4300.