Austin Knight - Baseball Coach - East Carolina University Athletics

Austin Knight

Title:
Volunteer Assistant Coach
Email:
knightau21@ecu.edu
Phone:
(252) 737-1989

Austin Knight, who served two years as the volunteer assistant coach at East Carolina, was officially named the Pirates’ pitching coach on July 7, 2021. The 2024 campaign marked his third in charge of the ECU pitching staff.

With Knight as part of the program, the Pirates have captured four American Athletic Conference regular season titles (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024) and the 2022 AAC Tournament crown as well as posting four NCAA Regional appearances (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), a home Super Regional (2022) and 196 total victories.

A four-year letterman at Ole Miss (2012-15), Knight worked alongside former ECU pitching and current Cal State Fullerton Head Coach Jason Dietrich in 2021 helping the Pirates to a 44-17 overall record, the American Athletic Conference regular season title, NCAA Greenville Regional championship as the No. 13 National Seed and an appearance in the Nashville Super Regional.

In 2024, Knight continued to leave his mark on an elite ECU pitching staff that produced a pair of All-Americans and three MLB Draft selections. Trey Yesavage finished out his Pirate career as a consensus First Team All-America honoree, garnering the accolade from the ABCA, Baseball America, College Baseball Foundation, D1Baseball, NCBWA and Perfect Game. He was named the American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and collected a spot on the NCAA Greenville Regional All-Tournament Team, slotting among the national leaders in several categories. Yesavage finished the campaign ranked second in WHIP (0.87) and fewest hits allowed per nine innings (4.73), third in earned run average (2.03), fifth in strikeouts (145) and victories (11) and ninth in strikeouts per nine innings (13.98). He was selected 20th overall by the Toronto Blue Jays in the MLB Draft – the second-highest pick in program history.

In addition to Yesavage, Knight mentored Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman who was selected as a Golden Spikes Award semifinalist and NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award finalist as well as a Baseball America First Team All-American, NCBWA Second Team All-American, ABCA All-Atlantic Region Second Team selection and All-AAC First Team honoree. One of the most electric relievers in all of college baseball, Lunsford-Shenkman finished the campaign with a 3-2 record, 1.55 earned run average, five saves and 79 strikeouts against 21 walks in 46.1 innings of work. Opposing batters hit just .218 off of him and he registered at least five strikeouts in seven outings – including a career-high eight in four scoreless innings versus Charlotte on April 13.

Collectively, the 2024 pitching staff ranked fifth in hits allowed per nine innings (7.70) and shutouts (six), eighth in earned run average (4.05), 11th in WHIP (1.29) and 17th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.2) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.59). The Pirates also tossed a pair of no hitters in run-rule wins over Elon and Charlotte.

2023 saw Knight help guide his second pitcher to All-America status as Yesavage picked up second-team honors from four publications (Baseball America, D1Baseball, NCBWA and Perfect Game). Yesavage finished among the national leaders in WHIP (12th/1.00), strikeouts per nine innings (17th/12.43), hits allowed per nine innings (17th/6.28) and ERA (22nd/2.61) while ending the campaign as the American Athletic Conference leader in opposing batting average, hits allowed and runs allowed. His 105 strikeouts also tied for the 10th most in a single season in program history.

The 2023 pitching staff staked its claim as one of the best in the country, slotting fourth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.10), fifth in WHIP (1.28), 11th in walks allowed per nine innings (3.25), 19th in hits allowed per nine innings (8.24) and 21st in ERA (4.34). ECU was by far the best unit in the conference, leading the circuit in ERA, opposing batting average (.240), innings pitched (593.1), strikeouts (663), looking strikeouts (165), victories (47), fewest doubles allowed (85) and fewest triples allowed (three). The Pirates also set the conference single-season record in strikeouts.

The 2022 season, Knight's first year in charge of the pitching staff, yielded 46 victories, the program's third-straight AAC regular season title and third AAC Tournament crown, an NCAA Greenville Regional championship and the first-ever Super Regional held at Clark-LeClair Stadium.

Under Knight's direction, Carter Spivey became the first relief pitcher in American Conference history to win the league's Pitcher of the Year award. Spivey also earned All-America accolades, ranking eighth nationally in appearances, 47th in victories and 54th in ERA while pacing the conference in earned run average, victories, fewest earned runs allowed and fewest doubles allowed. The pitching staff was ranked 12th nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio, 15th in WHIP, 15th in walks allowed per nine innings, 21st in hits allowed per nine innings and 31st in ERA.

ECU’s staff led The American in nine statistical categories in 2021, including ERA (4.03), fewest runs allowed (264), opponent batting average (.239), saves (19), strikeouts looking (160), total strikeouts (626) and wins (44). On a national scale, they ranked among the top 40 in six pitching columns strikeouts per 9 innings (18th/10.5), strikeout to walk ratio (22nd/2.98), WHIP (24th/1.29), hits allowed per 9 innings (31st/8.06), shutouts (38th/five) and ERA (39th).

Knight, who came to ECU on Sept. 4, 2019, spent two years at Louisiana Tech as the volunteer assistant coach working primarily with the catchers, while serving as the Bulldogs camp coordinator and helping with baseball operations under head coach Lane Burroughs. During his two seasons, the Bulldogs posted a 73-44 record that included a pair of top three finishes in Conference USA (second in 2018). Knight’s catchers allowed just 14 passed balls over two seasons and threw out 32 percent of would-be base stealers in 2018, which stood fourth in the league.

Prior to his stint at LA Tech, Knight spent two seasons as a graduate manager at the University of Arkansas Little Rock working under head coach Chris Curry. During that time with the Trojans, he worked with the catchers and assisted with all aspects of the program’s recruiting and traveling.

While at Little Rock, Knight spent two summers as an assistant baseball coach for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod Collegiate Baseball League tutoring some of the top young catchers in the country. Brent Diaz, a 2017 Johnny Bench Award finalist, not only saw an increase in power numbers but also saw his average rise nearly 60 points from 2016 to 2017. While in the Cape Cod League, Knight also coached Matt Whatley, a third-round pick by the Oakland A’s and winner of the 2017 Johnny Bench Award. Overall, he worked with five catchers who were selected in the 2017 MLB Draft.

Before making the leap into coaching, Knight played collegiately at Ole Miss under head coach Mike Bianco where he helped the Rebels to a 153 wins, four NCAA Regionals and an appearance in the 2014 College World Series. With Godwin’s tutelage, then an Ole Miss assistant coach, Knight appeared in over 120 games, was a two-time SEC Honor Roll selection and three-time scholar-athlete.

A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Knight received his undergraduate degree in business management from Ole Miss in 2015 and his masters in sports management from Little Rock in 2017. He is married to the former Taylor Rigney of Hattiesburg, Miss., and the couple currently resides in Greenville, N.C. with their son Deacon.