North Carolina State University Athletics
Chris Hart Hired As Full-Time Assistant Baseball Coach
8/16/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
RALEIGH, N.C. NC State baseball coach Elliott Avent announced today that Chris Hart has been promoted to the position of assistant coach. A former infielder at Florida State, Hart will coach the Wolfpack’s hitters, infielders and catchers. Hart spent the 2005 and ’06 seasons as the Wolfpack’s director of operations, then served as a volunteer assistant coach in 2007.
“Hiring Chris Hart gives us continuity in our program,” Avent said. “In his three years here, he’s shown himself to be a smart, knowledgeable baseball man, and he’s been very loyal to NC State. He really understands the game, and he relates well to players. He expressed a strong desire to stay here, and the opportunity to hire him as a full-time assistant worked out perfectly. Making him a full-time assistant coach is a great move for our program.”
Hart knows the Atlantic Coast Conference well. He was a four-year letterman for Coach Mike Martin Sr. at Florida State University from 1999-2003. He was a utilityman as a freshman, starting as the designated hitter against lefthanded pitching and playing 50 games in all. He began his sophomore year as the Seminoles’ starting catcher, but fractured his tibia eight games into the season. He was granted a medical hardship by the NCAA, restoring a year of eligibility, and came back as a redshirt-sophomore a year later, in 2001.
Lingering problems from his rehab cost Hart playing time the next two seasons, but he blossomed as a senior, playing in 67 games and making 63 starts at second and third base. He batted .305 with 10 doubles, four home runs and 35 RBIs that season as FSU rolled to a 54-13 record and a berth in the NCAA Super Regionals. Hart saved his best for the end of his playing career. He batted .438 in the 2003 ACC Tournament in Salem, Va., and then batted .350 with three doubles and four RBIs in the NCAA Regionals, including a four-hit game vs. Rutgers in the third round of the regional. He went 1-for-4 with a solo home run against eventual national champion Texas in his final college game in the Tallahassee Super Regional.
In all, Hart played 195 games for the Seminoles, starting 116 and batting .271 with 23 doubles, two triples, seven home runs and 72 RBIs. Hart’s four Florida State teams (1999, 2001-03) posted a combined record of 218-60 (.784) and appeared in the NCAA Super Regionals all four years. The Seminoles advanced to the College World Series in 1999 and 2000. During his career at Florida State, Hart played every position on the field except for pitcher and center field.
Upon graduation, Hart spent one year (2004) as an assistant coach at St. Petersburg (Fla.) College, where he served as hitting coach and third-base coach, and was involved in all aspects of running the program. Hart coached all positions defensively, and was involved in the program’s recruiting as well.
During the summer of 2004, Hart was head coach of the Loudoun Rangers of the Shennandoah Valley League. At Loudoun he coached players from seven different Division I Conferences, including the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Big East and Conference USA.
Hart was a two-time all-state selection and a four-time all-county pick in four years at Clearwater Central Catholic High School. Twice he was named All-Suncoast, and was the county home run leader as a junior. He was selected to the Florida All-Star Team as a senior, was Florida’s 1998 American Legion Player of the Year, and was taken in the 46th round of the 1998 MLB June Draft by the Boston Red Sox.
The 27-year-old Hart graduated from Florida State in 2003 with a degree in sport management. He is single.
