For the last three years, since his hiring as Head Coach of the Memphis baseball program, Coach Riser has been building Tigers baseball from the ground up, as he has had to reinvent the culture of Memphis baseball; for a program that hasn’t made an NCAA Regional since 2007, changing the culture has been an uphill climb, but in year three of his tenure, the pieces have come together to not only position Memphis to make a return to the postseason with the American tournament, but to possibly be a sleeper pick to reach a Regional as an at-large team. 

Despite finishing 22-33 last season, Coach Riser has retained 18 players, added 17 from the portal, and stayed local with five high school recruits from the Memphis area. That alone speaks volumes about the culture of Memphis baseball and the program’s current trajectory in year three of the Coach Riser era as the Head Baseball Coach at Memphis. Coach Riser and his staff have embraced the cultural issues that have plagued Memphis baseball for years, but the Tigers have more talent this year than ever before in terms of having the pieces to take that next step and, at the very least, make a return trip to the postseason by earning a bid to the American Tournament in Clearwater. 

Before we dive into the current path the program is on, one must understand that in three seasons at the helm at Memphis the culture of Memphis baseball has shifted due to the leadership of Dr. Ed Scott at the top with his investments into helping the program succeed, but with Coach Riser who decided to leave a comfortable situation he had at Southeastern Louisana to come to Memphis to rebuild the program. Despite having some history, Memphis has long been the baseball program that many said would never win, or it was too hard of a job, but Coach Riser has come into the program and not shyed away from the challenge and there’s growing optimism heading into the 2026 season that Memphis has the intaginbles needed to be an underdog threat to make series noise this spring. They have a fearless leader at Head Coach, with the full support and backing of Athletic Director Dr. Ed Scott, who is prepared to make the right investments to give Memphis baseball the best chance at competing for championships and postseason bids. 

Back to the player retention part of this, in the modern era of college athletics, retaining players after a good season is hard enough, let alone after a losing season, but those 18 guys led by Brayden Sanders, Shane Cox, James Smith, and others belive in what Coach Riser is doing at Memphis and want to be apart of the change happening within the program. The wins will come, but half the battle has already been won with unwavering support from the guys on the roster to start what they came to Memphis to do. Those 18 guys who decided to keep faith in the mission have the potential to go down in the folklore of Memphis baseball as the group of guys that changed the program for generations to come. 

Just last season, we saw in Murray State what can be done in Memphis; it takes time, but it can be done. Memphis now has the investments needed, combined with the roster and coaching, to make it happen. Coach Riser and his staff are on the verge of something special, and the Tigers have a blank slate in 2026 to make it happen. Again, the blueprint is there; it takes consistency, which comes with roster retention and a shared goal of staying together and operating as one, and making Memphis baseball into a household name. Coach Riser and his staff have been intentional about who they bring into the program, from coaching hires to the guys on the roster; everyone within the program shares the same mission: making Memphis baseball into the household name it deserves to be. 

Memphis will open the 2026 season in 29 days, welcoming the Toledo Rockets to FedEx Park, who finished 2025 as the runner-up in the MAC Tournament. 

Photo Credits – Memphis Baseball on X