Mike Rowan will begin his 16th season as head coach of the Ranger softball team entering the 2019 campaign.
The MACJC and Northwest Sports Hall of Fame inductee has amassed an overall record of 396-214-1 (.648) and a 215-113 (.655) mark in division/conference play in 15 seasons.
Rowan has led the Rangers to 30 or more wins four times and advanced to eight MACJC Tournaments and six NJCAA Region XXIII Tournaments during his tenure. He led Northwest to its first-ever north division championship in the history of the program in 2007 and set a school record for victories with 36. The Rangers added division titles in 2009 and 2015 before softball went to a conference-wide format in 2016.
A total of 48 Rangers have earned All-MACJC recognition under Rowan's watch in addition to nine NJCAA All-Region 23 selections. An additional 23 have continued their softball careers at the four-year level.
Off the field, Northwest has boasted one of the nation's top 10 GPAs in six consecutive years, finishing as the NFCA's junior college runner-up in 2013-14 (3.489) and 2014-15 (3.522). The Rangers have also boasted an MACJC-most 68 NFCA All-America Scholar Athletes during that time.
This is Rowan’s second coaching stint at Northwest, also heading up the track team in 1982 and leading the squad to the MACJC north division, state and Region XXIII championships. For his efforts, Rowan was named state and region Coach of the Year.
Other coaching experience for Rowan came at Senatobia High School from 1991-2002. His duties there included junior high basketball and football coach and girls’ cross country coach. Before going to Senatobia, Rowan was director of athletics at Baddour Memorial Center in Senatobia from 1982-92 where he worked with the Special Olympics.
A familiar name throughout the state, Rowan has been a certified official in football, basketball, baseball and softball for almost four decades. He has officiated sports on many different levels including the MAIS, MHSAA and the MACJC. Rowan has been named Softball Official of the Year by the MHSAA on three occasions.
Inducted into the Northwest Sports Hall of Fame in 1997, Rowan was an All-MACJC selection after the 1977 football season as a quarterback and played in the Mississippi Junior College All-Star Game. He also lettered two seasons in baseball (1976-77) at Northwest as a pitcher and outfielder and led the Rangers to back-to-back state championships.
Rowan is married to the former Kathy Thompson of Hickory Flat, and they have two older children, Brandon, head baseball coach at Senatobia High School, and Britney, who is an occupational therapist at OT 4 Kidz, LLC in Starkville.
