NC State baseball HC Elliott Avent talks retirement, NCAA Tournament selection

Elliott Avent has never had biological children. But for three decades in Raleigh, he’s raised a program full of sons.

They’ve come through N.C. State in waves, dozens at a time, leaving with better swings and sharper instincts on the field. But more than that, they’ve left with stories: Avent answering calls when third baseman Sherman Johnson gets a boot on his car, showing up at the hospital before sunrise for former catcher Jacob Cozart’s surgery, or making sure current center fielder Ty Head keeps his grades up.

“He’s just like our dad,” former third baseman Sherman Johnson said. “You can tell him anything. He helps us with everything — whether it’s parking tickets, school, whatever that is. He’ll help us.”

So when Avent announced last week that he would retire after 30 seasons as the Wolfpack’s baseball coach, it marked more than the end of an era for the program. It was a father figure stepping away.

Now, with one more NCAA Tournament appearance ahead — N.C. State’s fourth consecutive appearance and 10th in the last 11 seasons — the Wolfpack isn’t just chasing wins. The team is chasing one last ride with the man who helped raise them.

“He’s been awesome ever since I met him,” left-handed pitcher Ryan Marohn said. “All the players before me said the same thing. He’s the reason I came here out of high school. When I first met him, I knew that was a coach I wanted to play for.”

“This is his last run, so we’re gonna give everything we got for him.”

‘Right place at the right time’

It’s often said the decision to retire hits everybody at a certain time in their career.

For Avent, that moment was about a month ago. Before Avent could step away, there were a few things he wanted to check off — from facility upgrades to, most importantly, ensuring continuity in the dugout. Avent isn’t sure he would have retired without knowing longtime assistant Chris Hart would take over.

“It was the right place at the right time, but I wanted to make sure Chris Hart was the next head coach,” Avent said.

There was also one more box left unchecked for Avent. He didn’t want his final season to end without a postseason.

“Every player needs to experience that,” he said. “When I announced it, I took the chance … and thank goodness the committee saw fit to do what I think was the right thing and put us in. So that gives me great satisfaction.”

Although Avent told his team to prepare like they were in the field, the uncertainty lingered until Selection Monday, when N.C. State was selected as an at-large team for the NCAA Tournament.

Avent hardly celebrated outwardly. He just watched his players.

“It’s all about the players,” Avent said. “If you coach for the right reasons — which I’m not sure everybody does this for the right reasons anymore; college athletics has gotten a little bit skewed — there’s the players that everybody should (focus on).”

Speaking to the media on Wednesday ahead of the Wolfpack’s trip to the Auburn regional, Avent downplayed any notion of a farewell tour.

“If I wanted to draw some emotion, I would’ve announced it before the ACC Tournament,” Avent said. “I’m not that guy. I don’t want parades. I don’t want jackets. I don’t. I’ll put the keys on the desk and say bye.”

Still, Avent allowed himself one fitting description for what comes next — not a “last dance,” but something more his speed. He invoked his friend Ray Birmingham, the former baseball coach at New Mexico State University.

According to Avent, after Birmingham coached his last game, he “got on a horse and rode out from home plate to center field and just kept riding.

“I love Westerns,” Avent said Wednesday. “This will be the last ride.”

‘Our team believes’

There’s a porch swing behind Avent’s house, the kind that creaks when you settle into it. Avent sat there with his wife last Thursday night — hours after announcing his retirement — looking out at a peaceful, quiet yard with birds and chipmunks and squirrels. The phone inside kept ringing. He largely ignored it.

He picked up twice: for Janis Guzzo, the widow of N.C. State wrestling coach Bob Guzzo, who died last week, and for Pamela Valvano Strasser, the former wife of the late Jim Valvano.

“My connection to all those great people is what makes this place so special,” Avent said. “And I’m happy to be that person that can still tell those stories.”

In the days since, former players and coaches — at N.C. State and rival schools — tracked him down with their own. Messages came from former assistant Brett Austin, Wake Forest coach Tom Walter, UNC’s Scott Forbes. One of Avent’s favorites was a text from former North Carolina center fielder Vance Honeycutt.

“First of all, he had to go to the trouble to find my number from somebody,” Avent said — then kept rattling off names. Jordan Sprinkle, whom he mentored with USA Baseball. Troy Tulowitzki, a colleague in the same organization.

All of it made Avent pause. Made him wonder what more he could have done — not more wins or Omaha runs, but more conversations.

That’s where his mind went Wednesday. Not to his record, but to a long talk with senior infielder Wyatt Peifer in the newly renovated players’ lounge that morning. If he had it to do over, he’d spend more time there — talking, listening, guiding.

But there’s still baseball left.

“We want to win,” Hart said. “We’re not going down there to have a celebratory regional for Coach Avent by any means. Our team believes we can go down there and win.”

After weeks of scratching through injuries, the Wolfpack finally has its pitching lined up, its roster healthy, its footing back. One more weekend. One last ride with a team that isn’t ready to go quietly.

That was what Avent carried into the clubhouse after Selection Monday.

“Just remember how it feels to see your name up on that board,” he told his team, according to junior second baseman Luke Nixon. “Know that you’re going to the postseason. That you get to compete with your teammates and your best friends one more time.”