Hunter Coleman thought his collegiate baseball career at Texas A&M ended when the NCAA canceled all spring sports competition because of the coronavirus.
First coaches told the team their series against Auburn to start Southeastern Conference play was canceled. Coleman and the other players had packed and were getting ready to head out when they got the message. Soon after that, the NCAA ended all spring sports.
“It was very disappointing. It kind of all came at once,” Coleman, a senior at Texas A&M, told the Midland Reporter-Telegram. “A lot of the older guys, like myself, thought we were done with college ball forever."
The players reacted differently. Coleman said he was in shock. He didn't know how serious it was.
"A few days after that it really hit me emotionally,” he told the Midland Reporter-Telegram.
The Aggies started out the season strong, going 15-3. Coleman, a Lee grad, was hitting .269 with 3 home runs and 12 RBI. He started 15 of the 16 games he played. He said the team was on a roll, winning five straight games before a few tough losses.
“We had one bad weekend at the Frisco Classic, but we played two of those games close. I thought we were on the right track and we could have had a special season,” he told the Midland Reporter-Telegram.
Coleman’s hopes for a strong season came alive when the NCAA said that spring sport student-athletes could keep their last year of eligibility. Now he had options. He could come back to finish his final year of eligibility at College Station if professional baseball doesn’t work out.
He told the Midland Reporter-Telegram he already applied for graduate school. He’s finishing classes online to graduate in May with a degree in business management. The Graduate Record Examinations test is a hurdle he needs to clear to enter grad school. He wants to enter the real estate program.
But for now, he’s back in Midland taking classes online with Zoom video conferencing. A&M head coach Ray Childress told the team they needed to go home to be with their families.
“Most of my classes are very discussion-based. It’s almost the same as being in the classroom,” Coleman told the Midland Reporter-Telegram.
As for next year’s baseball season, the A&M strength and conditioning staff sent players instructions on how to stay in shape.
A big plus for Coleman in staying at A&M is the chance to play baseball for another season with his younger brother, Ty, a sophomore infielder.
He said the pandemic and the end to his season make it tough to tell what kind of pro prospects are. Coleman is sure he’d like another season at A&M and the chance to attend graduate school.