Head Coach Christian Ostrander
Christian Ostrander, widely regarded as a top collegiate pitching coach in the country, became the 14th head baseball coach at Southern Miss when he was elevated to the position this summer.
Ostrander becomes only the fifth coach to lead the program since 1959, following Pete Taylor (1959-83), Hill Denson (1984-1997), Corky Palmer (1998-2009) and Scott Berry (2010-2023), who retired following the 2023 season.
The associate head coach for the previous two seasons has been with the program for six years overseeing the pitching staff for the Golden Eagles.
During his first six years, Ostrander has helped lead the Golden Eagles to five NCAA regional berths, mentoring one National Pitcher of the Year, two Dick Howser and Golden Spikes national semifinalists, two Ferriss Trophy winners for top player in the state of Mississippi, five different All-Americans, one Freshman All-American and fourth conference Pitchers of the Year in Nick Sandlin (2018), Walker Powell (2021) and Tanner Hall (2022, 2023) twice. For the third time in its C-USA history, the program enjoyed three first-team C-USA pitchers picked in 2022.
In 2022, Ostrander was also named the C-USA Assistant Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season helping him become the only coach to ever win that award twice in its history.
Despite losing 12 pitchers off last year’s roster, Ostrander helped assemble another outstanding staff in 2023 that helped the Golden Eagles win 46 games as the program earned its seventh-straight NCAA Tournament berth. Led by Hall, who has posted an 12-4 record, Southern Miss led the Sun Belt Conference in earned run average (4.51), opposing batting average (.240), innings pitched (580 1/3), strikeouts (654) and wins (46). They also finished second in saves (19).
“I am extremely honored and humbled for the opportunity to be the next Head Baseball Coach at The University of Southern Mississippi,” said Ostrander when he accepted the position. “The rich tradition that had been built here over the years by Coach Taylor, Coach Denson, Coach Palmer, and Coach Berry is truly incredible and admirable. It is with great excitement and great privilege to lead this program moving forward."
In 2022, Ostrander also earned Conference USA Assistant Coach of the Year honors for the second consecutive season – the only coach in the history of the award to win twice - as the Golden Eagles finished with a school record 746 strikeouts, betting the previous top total by 163. The Golden Eagles also ranked No. 2 nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.12), WHIP (1.16), strikeouts per nine innings (11.3) and ERA (3.29), No 3 in walks per nine innings (2.73), No. 4 in shutouts (8) and No. in hits allowed by nine innings (7.73).
The year, which had the Golden Eagles reach the NCAA Super Regionals after defeating LSU two of three games to capture the Hattiesburg Regional, saw the program register its first season since 1993 with two pitchers reaching 100 strikeouts during the year.
The success of 2022 cam on the heels of being ranked No. 1 nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.06), No. 2 in walks per 9 innings (2.24), No. 3 in shutouts (8), No. 6 in WHIP (1.17) and 20th in earned run average (3.74). His top two starting pitchers, Hunter Stanley and Walker Powell, each merited All-American accolades during the 2021 campaign.
The Golden Eagles led the league in ERA, opposing batting average (.236) and batters struck out (560). They also finished second in the conference by allowing just 138 walks, which was the fewest given up by the squad since allowing 137 in 1982. In his four full seasons, not counting 2020, the program has put together at least seven shutouts each year including eight in each of the last two seasons.
Under his tutelage, the Golden Eagles posted their second no-hitter in the last three seasons in 2021 when Powell blanked Middle Tennessee on May 8, and the team’s strikeout total last spring (560) was the second most in school history.
Despite a shortened season in 2020, the Golden Eagle pitching staff performed well as Ostrander blended some veteran leadership pitching along with a bunch of newcomers. The results encompassed a 12-4 record by the squad that saw the pitching staff post 172 strikeouts with only 46 walks in 140 1/3 innings.
The shortened season also saw Ostrander’s group enjoy some accolades as reliever Stanley earned third-team All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball, while the publication also tabbed Ben Ethridge a Freshman All-America selection.
In his second year with the program in 2019, Ostrander oversaw a pitching squad that posted the school’s fourth-straight 40-win season. Entering the year, he had to retool a pitching staff that suffered the loss of the previous year’s Perfect Game National Pitcher of the Year, Nick Sandlin.
Still, he mentored Powell into becoming a first-team All-Conference USA selection, who also earned three Conference USA weekly awards during the year as well as a spot on the league’s all-tournament team. Redshirt freshman Gabe Shepard also garnered a spot on the C-USA all-tournament team on the basis of throwing seven innings in the school’s first no-hitter since 2004. Shepard, along with two Golden Eagles, blanked Rice 6-0 to help the Golden Eagles advance to the championship game for the fourth consecutive year.
Shepard, who was limited on a pitch count for much of the year due to a previous injury, was nurtured along by Ostrander, who became a big reason for the Golden Eagles late-season run, including his win in the opening game of the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional against Arizona State.
The pitching staff threw seven shutouts during the year and enjoyed 479 strikeouts from the staff against just 207 walks during the campaign.
In his first year with the program, Ostrander overcame losing four starting pitchers from the previous season and made great strides with the Golden Eagle pitching staff.
One of the biggest moves in his first season in 2018, was switching Sandlin, a relief pitcher up until that point, into a starter and he oversaw his progress to being the C-USA Pitcher of the Year, the 2018 Ferriss Trophy winner and a second-round draft pick to the Cleveland Indians.
Ostrander’s success cannot solely by tied to Sandlin’s success. In addition, Southern Miss posted a 3.70 earned run average which was the lowest team ERA in three seasons while putting together eight shutouts and limiting opponents to just 152 walks. The walks surrendered were the fewest since allowing just 137 in 1982.
The program finished in the Top 10 nationally in three different categories: second in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.40), third in shutouts and fourth in walks allowed per nine innings (2.49). In addition, the staff enjoyed 27 quality starts.
Ostrander came to Southern Miss after spending the last two seasons at Louisiana Team as their associate head coach and pitching coach. During those two years, the Bulldogs posted a 78-40 record and went to an NCAA Tournament.
Serving as the pitching coach for Louisiana Tech, Ostrander’s pitching staff shattered the record books leading the Bulldogs to 42 wins his initial season - the most for any LA Tech team since 1988.
Under the guidance of Ostrander, four Bulldog pitchers (Adam Atkins, Braden Bristo, Phillip Diehl and Nate Harris) were selected in the last two Major League Baseball First-Year Player Drafts.
In 2016, LA Tech’s pitching staff recorded a school-record 496 strikeouts, besting the previous school-record of 452 which was set twice. Of the 42 Bulldog wins, which ranked first in Conference USA, 10 wins were over top-25 schools and 11 wins were over top-50 RPI schools.
Prior to LA Tech, Ostrander spent seven years as the head coach at Jones County Junior College in Ellisville. In addition to his head coaching duties at JCJC, Ostrander oversaw the pitching staff in his time with the Bobcats.
Ostrander led the Bobcats to two MACJC state championships in 2011 and 2014 and helped guide Jones County to four division title in seven years. He also led JCJC to two 40-win seasons and set the school record for wins in a season on four different occasions. In seven seasons at Jones County, Ostrander compiled a 255-109 overall record with the Bobcats, good for a .701 winning percentage.
In 2015, Ostrander and the Bobcats put together a successful season with Jones County posting 30 wins with an appearance in the MACJC State Playoffs for the seventh consecutive season.
In 2014, JCJC enjoyed great success with a 46-11 record and a No. 6 ranking in the final NJCAA Division II poll. The 46 wins by the Bobcats matched the single-season record for victories in a season. The Bobcats were ranked No. 1 in the nation for most of the season and captured the 2014 state title at the end of the campaign. That season, JCJC led MACJC and Region 23 and were ranked seventh in the nation with a 2.92 team ERA.
Ostrander led the team to a second-place finish in the NJCAA Division II World Series in 2011. The 2011 Bobcats posted a 46-17 record, won the MACJC state championship and its first ever Region 23 title.
In his first season at JCJC, Ostrander led the Bobcats to a 36-16 overall record, a third-place finish in the MACJC South Division and a berth in the MACJC State Tournament. It marked the first time the Bobcats advanced to postseason play since winning a state title in 2002.
A year later, Ostrander led the Bobcats to their first-ever MACJC South Division regular season title, a 38-12 record and the host role in the MACJC State Tournament. Prior to his stint at Jones County, Ostrander previously served as recruiting coordinator and pitching coach at Arkansas State from 2002-06 and also led Gulfport High School to the Class 5A playoffs in two seasons as the head coach for the Admirals.
Ostrander also served the pitching coach, recruiting coordinator and camp coordinator at Delta State from 1999-2002.
DSU posted a 189-43 record during his four seasons, winning the Gulf South Conference West Division championship all four years and the South Regional championship in 2001 and 2002. In his final two seasons at Delta State, the Statesmen competed in the Division II College World Series in both 2001 and 2002.
He earned a bachelor's degree in education from Delta State in 1996 and his master's of education in administration from DSU in 1998. Ostrander has been a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association since 1998.
In the fall of 2019, Ostrander earned induction into the Jones College Hall of Fame.
Ostrander is a native of Monroe, La. He and his wife, Amy, have two daughters, Caitlin and Allie.