By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
For the first time in more than a quarter of a century Shawnee Heights will have a new baseball coach next spring.
Jason Brown
But Shawnee Heights didn't even leave its campus to find a replacement for longtime T-Bird coach Ryan Schmidt, who retired following the 2024 season, with Heights promoting Jason Brown, who has served as the school's freshman coach for the past decade.
Brown said the fact that he's familiar with virtually every player in the Shawnee Heights program is one of several factors in his decision to apply for the job.
"Just being part of the program for so long and just kind of putting everything I had into it, this is something I really wanted,'' Brown told TopSports.news.
Schmidt retired after 25 years as the T-Birds' head coach and 31 years in the program, leading the T-Birds to a pair of Class 5A state championships as Heights' head coach while also having a hand in two other state titles as an assistant under Craig Cox.
The T-Birds made numerous trips to the state tournament under Schmidt, including this past spring. Heights went 13-12 last season and returns a solid nucleus from that team, including All-Stater and Oklahoma State commit Deacon Pomeroy.
"I went to Shawnee Heights and I played there when I was in high school and we've always been a powerhouse so to speak,'' Brown said. "I definitely want to keep it going in that direction and try to bring something to it that's my own.''
Brown, who was an assistant coach at Highland Park earlier in his career, is a special education teacher at Shawnee Heights and also serves as an assistant wrestling coach for the T-Birds.
Shawnee Heights will be Brown's first head coaching position.
"I think it will be a good fit because I do know (the players) and going all the way up to our seniors, I have coached them,'' Brown said. "That definitely helps and will definitely help us be successful.''
Now Brown just wants to get the ball rolling in his new position.
"I was so thrilled when I was offered the postion,'' Brown said. "It's something I've always wanted to do and I'm just ready to go.
"I've been talking to people already and talking to the kids who have come by and congratulated me since school started back up and I'm really excited. I'm to the point where I almost wish baseball started tomorrow.''
