09/04/2026
Our Executive Committee Member At-Large is Rick Hitt from South Florida State College!
Rick Hitt will begin his 29th year as the longest-tenured coach in Panther Baseball history this August. In May 2022, Hitt was inducted into the National Junior College Athletic Association’s (NJCAA) Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame. Hitt began his coaching career 39 years ago as an assistant coach at Sebring High School.
In the past 16 years, Hitt has completed terms as the NJCAA Coaches Association secretary and vice president and served five years as the Association’s president, which included six years as a member of the NJCAA National Team staff. Hitt is currently the FCSAA State Baseball Chairperson for Region 8 in Florida and served 16 years on the FCSAA State Baseball Committee. Hitt also serves as the Region 8 men’s director for athletics.
In his tenure as a head coach, Hitt has seen over 230 players move on to four-year schools and/or professional baseball and has coached five players who have made it to the Major League level.
Hitt and his wife Jayma recently celebrated their 36th wedding anniversary together. They have two daughters, both SFSC graduates: Sydney and Cassady. Both daughters have followed in the footsteps of their mother and are teachers. Jayma recently retired from an incredible 37-year career as an elementary school instructor. “She is the true hall-of-famer in our house,” states Hitt. “The lives she impacted for so many years is incredible”.
As a pitcher at Santa Fe Community College, Hitt helped the Saints to a third-place finish in the 1985 NJCAA World Series playing for NJCAA and ABCA Hall of Fame Coach Harry Tholen. Hitt completed his baseball playing career at St. Thomas University, where he played for former Louisiana State University (LSU) coach and 2014 ABCA Hall of Fame inductee Paul Mainieri.
Thank you for all you do, Coach. You are deeply appreciated.
