Cohen's Corner - 6/27/18 - Mississippi State

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All of us at Mississippi State have heavy hearts as I address you today. Our entire family has suffered a great loss with the passing of Alex Wilcox, a freshman on our softball team who displayed incredible strength, resolve, passion and kindness during her battle with ovarian cancer.

It can be difficult to think about sports at times like these. When tragedy hits – real tragedy – it makes the wins and losses of athletic events seem trivial by comparison. But there is also a side to sports that shines brightest in moments like these. Despite all the intense competition on fields and courts, and all of the rivalry in the stands around them, sports have the unique ability to bring together people of all backgrounds when someone special takes the scene.

Alex was that special someone, and through her memory she remains that special someone. Her story took hold in the world of athletics not just because she was a softball player, but because of the incredible way she approached her fight with cancer. Alex displayed inspiring poise, attacking her battle with unending strength and unrelenting optimism, a shining light on every field, in every dugout and throughout any place she went.

We will have an on-campus memorial service for Alex next Thursday, July 5, at 3 p.m. in the Chapel of Memories for those who would like to attend.

As the MSU family mourns this loss, we celebrate the great life Alex Wilcox led and we remember what she taught us: that no one fights alone.

DIAMOND DAWGS BACK FROM 10TH TRIP TO CWS

As the 2017-18 athletic-academic year comes to a close, I have to say how proud I am of our baseball team for extending that year by a couple more weeks. I've said it many times in this space over the last few months, but I'll say one more time how incredibly proud I am of that team, that staff and everyone around the program for the way they responded in the face of adversity.

This is a program that prides itself on being one of the best in the country, and this crew showed what it means to wear the Maroon and White proudly. Playing for the name on the front of your uniform is a cliché, but it's also one that truly means something at Mississippi State.

I would be remiss if I didn't say a very specific and very enthusiastic thank you to Coach Henderson for the remarkable job he did leading our team and our program in a situation that was far from ideal. He handled the entire situation with tremendous class from day one all the way through the end as he guided our Bulldogs on one of the great runs in the history of the program. What Coach Henderson did this year will not be forgotten at MSU.

The 2018 baseball season was an unbelievable one for so many reasons, and I thank all of you for supporting our Bulldogs the whole way through.

WELCOME TO COACH LEMONIS AS NEW DIAMOND DAWG SKIPPER

Yesterday, it was my great joy to introduce Chris Lemonis as the new head coach of your Mississippi State baseball team. This coaching search was a unique one, as I had the opportunity to watch potential candidates throughout the course of their seasons. With months to spend researching, I was afforded the luxury of time, and I am thrilled that the end result was to bring Coach Lemonis on board.

Chris is the premier recruiter in the country, something I know well from my years in the past having to recruit against him, but to spend too much time saying what a great recruiter he is would take away from what a talented game manager and developer of talent he is. A brief glance through his success as both an assistant and head coach, along with a look through the number of high draft picks from his teams, show that he truly is the complete package as a baseball coach.

It is with excitement that we welcome Coach Lemonis and his family to our big Mississippi State family. We look forward to watching what he does and we can't wait to cheer on great Bulldog baseball teams at Dudy Noble Field for years to come.

We appreciate what you do for Mississippi State Athletics and want to encourage you to get others involved. There are three things you can do to help the athletic department at Mississippi State reach its desired goals:

1. Buy Season Tickets
2. Financially Support the Bulldog Club
3. Get Others To Do The Same

Thanks for taking the time to read this update.

Hail State!

John Cohen
Director of Athletics

Mississippi State University Athletics

Cohen's Corner - 6/27/18

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