Derek Matlock Baseball Academy at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Department of Intercollegiate Athletics hired Derek Matlock, who spent the previous five years as the recruiting coordinator and pitching coach at West Virginia and the 19 years prior coaching in Texas, as the new head coach of the UTRGV baseball team on June 10, 2017.

2023: Coached team to fourth-straight 30+ win season is a full season, winning 30 games. This is the first time the program has had four-straight 30+ win seasons since 1983-88 … Led team to 11-10 record on the road, making this the first time UTRGV has posted a winning record on the road since 2000 (8-7-1) … UTRGV finished WAC play with a 9-6 road record, marking the second-straight season in which UTRGV has had a winning road record in WAC play … UTRGV won four-straight games by 10+ run May 18-23 for the first time in program history after previously doing so in three-straight games six times … Coached offense to 68 home runs, tied for the second-highest total in program history, and 365 RBI, the fifth-most in program history … Guided Brandon Pimentel to All-WAC First Team and WAC All-Defensive Team honors, Angelo Cabral to All-WAC Second Team honors, and Issac Lopez to WAC All-Defensive Team honors … Had four players named national player of the week, including Pimentel (twice), Cabral and Colten Davis … Starting rotation had three of the top eight ERAs in the WAC, with Cabral leading the way at 3.22, Jesus Aldaz ranking seventh at 3.99, and Davis finishing eighth at 4.04 … Among the best in the NCAA in turning double plays, ranking 15^th in total DPs (51) and 17^th in DPs per game (0.91), ranking second in the WAC in both … Also piled up the strikeouts, as UTRGV pitching led the WAC and ranked 33^rd in the NCAA in strikeouts per nine innings (9.8), and second in the WAC and 47^th in the NCAA in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.31).

2022: Coached team to third-straight 30+ win season is a full season, winning 32 games. This is the first time the program has had three-straight 30+ win seasons since 1983-88 … Led team to 8-7 record in WAC road games, marking the first time UTRGV has ever posted a winning record on the road in WAC play. The last time UTRGV had a winning record in conference road games was 1997, when the team went 10-3 in Sun Belt Conference road games during Hall of Famer Al Ogletree’s final season as head coach … Guided team to 12 total road wins, the program’s highest total since 2006 (15) … Coached pitchers to program record 485 strikeouts and 12 saves, tied for the fifth-highest single-season total in program history … Helped hitters finished with 63 home runs and 101 doubles, the third and fifth-highest single-season totals in program history … Led team to 23-run outburst vs. GW (2/23), tied for the fifth-highest single-game total in program history. UTRGV had 23 RBI in that game, which ranks third in program history … Coached team to program record eight doubles as part of 26-hit performance, which ranks second in program history, at Sam Houston (4/3) … Coached program record-tying six home runs performance for second-straight season, this time at UTSA (5/3) … Guided Kevin Stevens to All-WAC First Team honors, Brett Cain and Brandon Pimentel to All-WAC Second Team honors, and Isaac Lopez to WAC All-Defensive Team honors … Stevens also earned All-WAC Tournament Team recognition … Pimentel earned National Player of the Week honors (3/7) and was part of the Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Midseason Watch List.

2021: Coached team to WAC Tournament Championship Series for first time in program history … Team earned first WAC Tournament wins, going 3-2 … Last of those wins was 100^th of Matlock’s career, a 10-0 upset of #2 seed Sacramento State (5/29) … Finished season with 32-26 record, including a program record 20 WAC wins (20-15) … Team received votes in two National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) polls twice (Feb. 22 and March 8) … Took two out of three from Baylor, marking the program’s first series victory over a Big 12 opponent since 2000 … Earned three wins against Power 5 competition (two vs. Baylor and one at Washington) … Team hit 50 home runs, the fifth-highest single-season total in program history … Coached seven student-athletes to All-WAC honors – Andy Atwood, Kevin Stevens, Coleman Grubbs, Jacob Hirsh, Freddy Rojas Jr., RJ Ochoa and Christian Sepulveda … Atwood, Grubbs and Sepulveda also earned All-WAC Tournament Team honors … Atwood hit 10 home runs, tying for what was then the ninth-highest single-season total in program history … Rojas earned back-to-back National Player of the Week honors (March 22 and 29) after hitting home runs in six-consecutive game, two shy of the NCAA record … Stevens also earned a National Player of the Week award … Helped Ricky Gerik Jr. lead the NCAA in fewest innings pitched per win, averaging a win every 2.86 innings … Coached Conrado Diaz to Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Watch List for second-straight season.

2020: Ended the season on an eight-game winning streak with an 11-7 record … Went 10-3 at home while averaging 1,087 fans per game, the program’s best mark in more than a decade … Beat Kansas State twice to open the season while also earning an 11-inning road win at Houston  … UTRGV was one of just three teams in the NCAA to turn a triple play … UTRGV ranked 12^th in the nation in shutouts (three), 40^th in walks drawn (85), 44^th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.4), 58^th in hits (155) and double plays turned (12), 63^rd in doubles (31) and sacrifice flies (eight), 64^th in runs scored (108), and 66^th in on-base percentage (.385).

2019: Earned WAC Coach if the Year honors … In just his second season at the helm, Matlock led the program to a share of its first WAC Championship, first NCAA Division I conference championship and first since 1955 by going a program-best 19-8 in WAC play … Overall, UTRGV went 34-21, marking the program’s winningest season since 1991 (37-21). Matlock guided the team to an 11-win (47.8 percent) improvement overall and an 11-win (137.5 percent) improvement in WAC play.

2018: Tied program record for best start by a first-year head coach by going 4-0 … Led team to first-ever road win over a Pac-12 opponent by knocking off eventual NCAA Super Regional participant Washington … Also beat NCAA Tournament participant and WAC Tournament Champion New Mexico State … Went 15-15 against non-conference schedule that included College World Series participants Washington, Texas, Texas Tech, Mississippi State … Coached UTRGV to the No. 3 ranking in the WAC in pitching with a 4.67 team ERA, and the No. 4 ranking in fielding percentage at .972 … UTRGV also turned 56 double plays, the 14^th-highest total in the NCAA, for an average of 1.04 per game, the sixth-highest total.

West Virginia is coming off its first NCAA Regional berth in 21 years after earning the first at-large bid in program history by going 36-26. In Matlock’s five seasons, West Virginia went 160-127 (.557) and made the Big 12 Tournament every year. Matlock recruited and coached five All-Americans and had six pitchers drafted, including three in the top 15 rounds of the MLB Draft. One of those pitchers was 2013 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and Louisville Slugger All-American Harrison Musgrave, who is currently pitching at AAA Albuquerque after being selected by the Colorado Rockies in the eighth round of the 2014 MLB Draft.

Matlock went to West Virginia after five years as the recruiting coordinator and pitching coach at Texas State, a program he helped to four-straight Southland Conference Championships, marking the first conference championships in program history, and two NCAA Regional berths. Overall, Texas State went 219-136 (.617) during Matlock’s tenure, twice winning a program record 41 games. He recruited five All-Americans to Texas State and developed three Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year honorees. Matlock also had eight pitchers selected in the MLB Draft.

Matlock’s 2012 pitching staff put together a streak of 57.2 consecutive scoreless innings, just 6.1 short of the NCAA record, en route to a program record 3.02 ERA.

One of Matlock’s top recruits at Texas State was St. Louis Cardinals first baseman and six-time All-Star Paul Goldschmidt.

Matlock joined Texas State after three seasons as the volunteer assistant coach at TCU, during which time he worked with the pitchers and catchers. TCU went 80-43 during those two seasons, winning back-to-back conference championships and advancing to the NCAA Regionals. Matlock coached two players who went on to be selected in the top two rounds of the MLB Draft, including Lance Broadway, who was the 15^th overall pick and went on to pitch for the Chicago White Sox and New York Mets. Matlock also coached 2016 NL Cy Young Award winner and 2015 All-Star Jake Arrieta, who led the Chicago Cubs the its first World Series Championship in 108 years in 2016, and St. Louis Cardinals first baseman and three-time All-Star Matt Carpenter.

Matlock gained his first experience in collegiate baseball as manager of the Denton Outlaws of the Texas Collegiate League (TCL) from 2004-07. He finished as the second most successful coach in league history by going 78-63 (.553), winning the 2005 TCL Championship, and earning TCL Coach of the Year honors in 2005 and 2006. He also had the opportunity to coach 2014 AL Cy Young Award winner and 2016 All-Star Corey Kluber, who led the Cleveland Indians to the World Series that season.

Matlock began his coaching career as the assistant coach at Eastern Hills High School in Fort Worth in 1994 before being elevated to head coach in 1996. Matlock took over a great program and made it better, added a locker room, so that kids were not changing in the parking lot and also with the help of the district played District games at home for the first time. He won back-to-back district championships en route to ranking in the top 10 in the state. Matlock earned District Coach of the Year honors in 1996 and 1997 and Fort Worth Star-TelegramCoach of the Year honors in 1998.

Matlock then became the head coach at Flower Mound High School from 2000-04, starting a brand new baseball program and ranking in the top five in the nation by his third season. The 2003 squad finished in the top four in the state while the 2004 team finished second.

During his nine seasons as a high school head coach, Matlock went 251-67 (.789).

Matlock earned his Bachelor of Science in Exercise and Sports Studies from UT Arlington in 1992 and his Master of Education from Texas Wesleyan in 2000.

Originally from Fort Worth, Matlock and his wife, Michel, have three sons, Dylan, and twins Ryan and Brett.

Ryan Jackson returned the UTRGV baseball team as a volunteer assistant in August 2022 after playing for the Vaqueros from 2015-19.

Jackson came back to UTRGV after one season as an assistant coach at Texas A&M International. He also has collegiate coaching experience as a volunteer assistant at Texas Lutheran in 2020.

At both TAMIU and TLU, Jackson oversaw the pitching staff and developed the team’s throwing programs. While at TLU, he also served as pitching coach for Naturals Baseball Academy with the U13 and U17 teams.

From 2017-19, Jackson was an Assistant Manager/Trainer for Ochoa’s Baseball Academy, as well as a volunteer coach for his high school alma mater, Nikki Rowe.

After graduating from UTRGV in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and a minor in Business Management, Jackson signed with the Tampa Bay Rays organization, dominating for the Gulf Coast Rays (Rookie), Princeton Rays (Rookie Advanced), Hudson Valley Renegades (Short-Season A) and Port Charlotte Stone Crabs (Advanced A) by recording four saves with a 0.64 ERA. In 16 relief appearances, Jackson pitched 28.0 innings, striking out 34 while allowing just 17 hits and three walks.

After the season, Jackson was assigned to Bowing Green, which at the time was Class A, but after the pandemic wiped out the 2020 minor league season, Jackson was released prior to the start of spring training in 2021.

Jackson was dominant during his final two seasons at UTRGV, finishing with 15-career saves, the second-highest total in program history.

As a senior in 2019, Jackson went 5-4 with eight saves and a 1.74 ERA. In 28 games (one start), he pitched 46.2 innings, striking out 61 while allowing just 46 hits and 13 walks en route to All-WAC First Team Reliever honors. He posted eight saves, the third-highest single-season total in program history, and ranked 78^th in the NCAA and third in the WAC in pitching appearances (28), and 80^th in the NCAA and first in the WAC in saves (8) while helping UTRGV to the WAC Championship.

Originally from McAllen, Jackson was All-Valley Freshman of the Year in 2010 at Nikki Rowe, and in his senior year, earned All-Valley Pitcher of the Year, Team MVP, Second Team All-Valley Third Baseman, and Second Team All-Valley Pitcher honors, helping lead his team to District and Bi-District Championships before finishing as Area Finalists.