USM Baseball Names Former MCC Coach To Staff

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Southern Miss head baseball coach Scott Berry announced today the addition of Michael Federico to the Golden Eagle baseball staff as an assistant coach with emphasis on pitching. Federico's hiring is pending approval by the Board of Trustees, Institute of Higher Learning.

"We are very excited to add Mike to our staff," Berry said. "He has an excellent knowledge of pitching and is an outstanding recruiter both of which will be a tremendous asset to our program."

If anyone understands the Southern Miss baseball program, Federico does. He was a player for the Golden Eagles under Hill Denson from 1995-97 and became a graduate assistant coach under Corky Palmer from 1998-99, helping the Golden Eagles to a NCAA Regional in 1999.

After his stint at Southern Miss he became an assistant coach under Scott Berry at Meridian Community College in 2000, a team that played in the JUCO world series, and while the head coach at Meridian C.C. current Golden Eagle associate head coach Chad Caillet was his top assistant from 2002-04.

Since leaving Meridian in 2004, he has competed against Southern Miss each season as the top assistant at Conference USA foe Memphis.

"My family and I are extremely excited to come back home to Southern Miss," Federico said. "I am just as excited to join such a great program with two great coaches who I have known for a long time."

At Memphis, Federico was the Tigers top assistant coach the previous five seasons where he was in charge of the pitching staff, worked with the catchers and led the Tigers recruiting efforts.

Under Federico's coaching, the Tiger pitching staff improved in his first two years, and then, despite an influx of injuries to its starting pitching rotation, earned a berth in the 2007 NCAA Tournament, the Tigers first appearance since 1994.

Prior to joining the Memphis staff in 2004, he was the head coach at Meridian Community College (2002-04), where he was a two-time Junior College Coach of the Year honoree, In 2003 and 2004, he led his squad to the JUCO World Series in Grand Junction, Colo.

Federico led MCC to a 46-14 finish and a ninth-place finish in the JUCO World Series in 2004. Several of his players received accolades following the 2004 season, as two players were named as All-Americans, four players received All-Region 23 honors, and nine Eagles were voted to the All-State team. Federico was named Region XXIII and Southeastern District Coach of the Year.

In 2003, he led the Eagles to a fifth-place finish in the Alpine Bank JUCO World Series in Grand Junction, Colo. The Eagles also won the MACJC Central Division, Region XXIII and Southeastern Regional Championships. Federico was honored with Region XXIII and Southeastern District Coach of the Year accolades for his accomplishments in 2003.

Before taking over the head duties, Federico served as the assistant coach for two years, working with pitchers and catchers. As an assistant, he helped lead the Eagles to two conference championships, one region, and one sectional championship and a trip to the 2000 JUCO World Series.

Prior to joining the staff at Meridian, Federico served as a graduate assistant coach Southern Miss for two years under Corky Palmer. In 1999, his last year with the Golden Eagles, he helped the black and gold to the NCAA Southeast Regional, in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

As a player, Federico was a catcher at Southern Miss from 1995-97, serving as the team captain his senior year. He started his collegiate career at Hinds Community College (1993-95), where he was the starting catcher and helped his teams to back-to-back Division II World Series appearances.

Federico received both his undergraduate degree in physical education (1998), and his master's degree in sports administration (1999) from Southern Miss.

A native of Slidell, La., Federico attended Pope John Paul II High School, where he was the starting catcher for four years. During this time, he was named All-State, All-District, All-Metro and team captain.

Federico, 34, is married to the former Hannah Sosa of Bush, La., who is also a Southern Miss graduate (1999) and former Golden Eagle Diamond Darling. The couple has two sons, Hayden (3) and Brycen (15 months).

Courtesy of SouthernMiss.com