Former ECU baseball assistant fills position at Mississippi State

STARKVILLE, Miss. – New Mississippi State head baseball coach Brian O’Connor has turned to a trusted and familiar voice as he builds his staff in Starkville.

O’Connor announced the hiring of longtime Virginia assistant Kevin McMullan as the Bulldogs’ associate head coach. Widely regarded as one of the premier assistant coaches and recruiters in college baseball, McMullan spent the past 22 seasons at Virginia, including the last 19 as associate head coach under O’Connor.

“Mac has set the standard in player development for as long as I’ve known him,” O’Connor said. “His record helping to make these young men better baseball players and better people is unmatched in college baseball. He is an elite recruiter, develops winners and brings a tireless work ethic to our program. I am very happy that Mac is coming to Mississippi State, and I am excited that it sends a powerful message about the vision we have for this program.”

A two-time National Assistant Coach of the Year (2009, 2024), McMullan helped guide Virginia to seven College World Series appearances and a national championship in 2015. The Cavaliers averaged 42 wins per season during his tenure, reaching the NCAA Tournament 18 times.

He also oversaw one of the most productive offenses in the country over the last two decades, with Virginia leading the ACC in batting average over the past 15 years and hitting above .300 as a team in multiple seasons. In 2024, UVA ranked in the top five nationally in hits, runs, batting average, doubles, slugging percentage and on-base percentage, while belting a school-record 116 home runs.

Defensively, McMullan’s impact was equally strong. Virginia owns the highest fielding percentage in the ACC since his arrival (.973), with 10 of his teams finishing among the nation’s top 40 in that category. The Cavaliers eclipsed the .970 mark in fielding 16 times in his 22 years.

McMullan was voted by his peers as the nation’s top assistant coach in a Baseball America poll of Division I head coaches in 2012, 2017 and 2020.

Over the course of his 27-year college coaching career, more than 100 players under McMullan have signed professional contracts, including 52 Virginia position players drafted and 17 who reached the major leagues. That list includes Ryan Zimmerman (Washington), Mark Reynolds (Milwaukee), Joe Koshansky (Colorado), Brandon Guyer (Tampa Bay), Sean Doolittle (Oakland), David Adams (New York Yankees), Chris Taylor (Seattle), Phil Gosselin (Atlanta), Jarrett Parker (San Francisco), John Hicks (Seattle), Derek Fisher (Houston), Adam Haseley (Philadelphia), Matt Thaiss (Los Angeles Angels), Joe McCarthy (San Francisco), Pavin Smith (Arizona), Ernie Clement (Cleveland), Jake McCarthy (Arizona) and Zack Gelof (Oakland).

Prior to Virginia, McMullan held coaching roles at East Carolina, St. John’s and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He also managed in the Atlanta Braves organization and played professionally in the Yankees system. A two-sport All-American at IUP, McMullan was an NCAA standout in both baseball and football.

“Mississippi State is a place with championship tradition, passionate fans and the resources to be elite in everything we do,” McMullan  said. “Our players, coaches and staff will work every day in a way that respects and honors that tradition and earns the opportunity to compete in front of the best fanbase in college baseball. Hail State!”

McMullan is a 1990 graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He and his wife, Sandra, have three children: Maggie, Emma and Jack. Their son Jack is currently baseball player at Liberty University. McMullan’s father, John, was an All-American football player at Notre Dame and played in the NFL with the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Titans (now the Jets).