Beck hired as RHS baseball coach
RUSSELLVILLE — The path Blake Beck took to becoming the head coach of the Russellville High School baseball program began back in 2022.
As Russellville took on Leeds High School in the Class 5A state quarterfinals, Beck, who was the pitching coach at Tennessee Tech University at the time, sat in the crowd and took in the experience at Golden Tiger Stadium.
From that point forward, the chance to one day lead the Golden Tigers as the head baseball coach was always on Beck’s mind.
On Friday, the Russellville City Schools Board of Education made the possibility a reality as Beck was approved as the program’s new head coach.
“I got to see the atmosphere, the community involvement and just how the program handled itself overall,” Beck said. “That was the experience I leaned on when making the decision to come here.”
A 2009 graduate of Hamilton High School, Beck played baseball at Shelton State Community College before transferring to Troy University, where the Trojans won the Sun Belt Conference title in 2013.
From there, Beck bounced around in coaching from Mississippi State to Jones College and even Auburn University, where he got the chance to coach former Golden Tiger standouts Cody Greenhill and Judd Ward.
In the summer of 2022, Beck was hired as the head baseball coach at Muscle Shoals High School, where he spent two seasons before becoming the pitching coach for Eastern Kentucky University.
Beck said while he enjoyed the challenge of coaching at the collegiate level, he and his family are ready to settle down and curb the constant moving from place to place.
Coming back to the high school ranks, Beck said seeing the success of the RHS program and the leadership of Superintendent Tim Guinn and the administration played a key role in his decision to join Russellville.
As for what he brings to the locker room in terms of philosophy, Beck said the real training begins off the field.
“I believe, as a coach, if we can develop the kids as people first, we’re going to get a better player,” Beck said. “The baseball success that comes after is a byproduct of that mindset.”
Beck said he plans to mesh the fundamentals involved in baseball with a bit of an analyticsbased approach when he takes over the program. However, he said doing the small things right despite what the numbers might suggest will be the key to success.
“The mound is still 60-feet six inches from the plate and you still have to throw a strike to get the guy out,” Beck said, “and that’s what we’re going to do.”
Over the past decade, Russellville baseball has experienced unprecedented success by winning five state championships across those 10 years. The program has produced dozens of college players, all-state selections and cultivated a passionate fan base in the process during that stretch as well.
For Guinn and the RCS administration, finding a head coach to build upon the successful foundation laid by earlier coaches was a priority.
Guinn said several candidates from both the college and high school levels were discussed and interviewed for the position. He said Beck had a “great interview.” He praised the new head coach for his passion for the game and northwest Alabama, both of which were a determining factor.
“He (Beck) seemed like he would be a great fit for us and our culture,” Guinn said. “We want to get back to being one as an athletic program, which means all the coaches working together to better the students on and off the field. And I think coach Beck will help us with that.”
