John Weber enters his fourth season as the Head Baseball Coach and Director of Athletics at Purdue University North Central where he also assists with student activities and teaches at PNC.
Weber has lead the Panther program to new heights with just two recruiting classes. In 2007 PNC finished 28-22 overall and 13-7 (2nd place) in the CCAC. The seond place finish (of 11 teams) is the higest in school history.
In 2006 the Panthers set the single season wins mark at 32-20 while finishing 5th in the CCAC (11-9). PNC also won the CCAC Tournament and qualified for the NAIA Regionals, just the second time PNC has qualified for the post season.
PNC reached their highest regional ranking (third) in both 06' and 07' - only the second and third time PNC ever received recognition.
Weber, who already is the all-time winningest coach at PNC, led the Panthers to an 18-23-1 overall record and a 8-12 mark in the CCAC (8th )in his first season in 04'. The 18 wins is the fourth highest single-season win total for PNC. Weber, who started his new position in October, 2004 and took over the program with just 16 players, has averaged more wins per season than the previous single season wins mark at PNC.
Prior to PNC Weber was the Head Baseball Coach, Sports Information Director and a teacher at Lakeland College in Sheboygan, WI for six years. He established himself as the most successful coach in the history of Lakeland in any sport. The baseball team had won only two conference titles in 60 years but Weber's teams won Lake Michigan Conference titles in his last four years and earned their first NCAA tournament appearances in 02' and 03', including a 5th place finish at the 02' Division III College World Series. Lakeland is still the smallest college ever to make a Division III, CWS appearance with an enrollment of just over 700.
Weber received numerous honors for his team's accomplishments, including being named the LMC Coach of the Year four times, the 2002 Midwest Regional and Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association College Coach of the Year. He was also a featured speaker at the 2004 American Baseball Coaches Association national convention .
Weber left Lakeland as the all-time victories leader with the best winning percentage in program history. His teams set virtually every team and individual mark, including wins in a season three times. They averaged more wins per season than the previous single season wins record at Lakeland and were nationally ranked several times, reaching a high of 5th in 2002. He coached 46 All-Conference selections, with three Players of the Year.
Off the field Weber was equally successful. He had nearly 50 Academic All-Conference selections and a team GPA of almost 3.0. As SID, Weber oversaw the daily management of the department and developed the first athletic website. Weber also wrote all press releases, designed media guides and hosted a local television show.
Prior to Lakeland, Weber was the Associate Head Coach for the legendary Irish O'Reilly at Lewis University (Romeoville, IL) in 1998, where he led the pitchers to the second best ERA in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Before Lewis, Weber coached at Morton Community College in Cicero , IL where he served as head coach for the 1997 season and built the program from 12 to 40 players in one year.
Weber started his career at Benedictine University in Lisle, IL under reknown coach, John Ostrowski. In Weber's first season as pitching coach his staff led the nation in ERA at 2.49, down from 6.40 the previous year.
Weber is known for recognizing and developing talent in both his players and his coaches. Seven of his former assistant coaches became head coaches at the collegiate level, while 13 of his former players were either drafted or signed to professional contracts, including nine pitchers.
Academically, Weber graduated from Lewis in 1993 with a Bachelor's in Marketing and played for O'Reilly as a pitcher. During this time the Flyers made two Division II CWS appearances, finishing 3rd in 90' and 4th in 92'. 15 of Weber's team mates moved on to pro baseball with three making the majors. While coaching at Benedictine, Weber earned his Master's degree in Management and Organizational Behavior with an emphasis in Human Resources in 1996.
Weber attended Benet Academy High School in Lisle, IL and graduated in 1989, when he led the Redwings to their only trip to state for baseball. The Redwings finished 31-9 under Marty Wiora as Weber finished 14-3 on the mound and played shortstop when not pitching.
Weber, 37, and his wife Erin are both natives of Lisle, IL. They have two daughters (Hope, age 5 and Kate, age 2) and reside in Valparaiso.
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