FCA is proud to honor Tyler Junior College’s head baseball coach Doug Wren with this year’s Jerry Kindall Character in Coaching Award.
FCA presents the Kindall Award each year at the ABCA Convention to the college or high school baseball coach who best exemplifies the Christian principles of character, integrity, excellence, teamwork and service.
“Fellowship of Christian Athletes has honored an incredible coach who has impacted numerous players over his successful career,” said FCA President and CEO Shane Williamson. “We congratulate Doug Wren for not only his coaching accomplishments, but also for the way he has touched the lives of countless young athletes and impacted them for the Kingdom of God.”
FCA collegiate Representative Joey Petrich commented, “Coach Wren’s program is one that is regularly producing champions both on and off the field. I have the distinct pleasure to be able to see Coach Wren striving to have a program that produces coaches and athletes who exemplify integrity, serving, teamwork and excellence.
“Coach Wren is the same man on fire for the Lord whether you see him Sunday at Church or Tuesday on the baseball field. He loves his family and his players like Jesus Christ loves his Church. Every Wednesday morning for the past two years, Coach Wren has woken up at 6:00 AM and headed to school not for practice, but to cook his entire team breakfast and share the Gospel with them while we talk about manhood.”
Wren has received the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) National Junior College All-American National Coach of the Year Award multiple times (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021), as well as the ABCA Regional Coach of the Year for Region C Award several times as well (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021). Wren also is a five-time National Junior College Athletic Association national champion.
Wren has coached hundreds of athletes into National Collegiate Athletic Association four-year schools, as well as eight players drafted by Major League Baseball teams.
“I have seen and heard stories of him sharing the Gospel with players during practice, outside the field, and on campus,” Petrich said. “He is not just a coach who invites a local FCA rep in to minister to his team — he is a coach who partners with me to walk side by side as we pursue his coaches and teammates for Jesus Christ. Four of his players currently serve on our FCA leadership team. Between 12-20 of players show up weekly to our Tyler Collegiate FCA Huddle and one of his players just this month surrendered his life to Christ.
“Coach Wren is a coach who pursues excellence on the field, excellence in his marriage, excellence as a father, but most importantly I see him pursue excellence as a disciple who is called to make disciples.”
The award’s namesake, Jerry Kindall, passed away on Christmas Eve 2017. The legendary coach and baseball standout was well-known and respected among his peers and those he coached over the years. He was the first person in NCAA history to win a baseball national championship as both a player and a coach. In addition to his three titles at the University of Arizona as a coach, Kindall played shortstop for the 1956 National Champion University of Minnesota team.
Signed by the Chicago Cubs in 1956, Kindall went on to play eight seasons in the Major Leagues with the Cubs, Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins. Following his professional career, Kindall became the University of Arizona Wildcats head skipper from 1973-1996. He was Arizona’s all-time leader in career wins, finishing his coaching career with a record of 860-580-6. Kindall was a member of both the University of Minnesota and University of Arizona Halls of Fame and was the recipient of the ABCA’s Prestigious Lefty Gomez Award in 1999 as well as a three-time national ABCA Coach of the Year.
Visit the Awards Page for a list of previous Jerry Kindall Award recipients.
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Photo courtesy of Apache Athletics