GAINESVILLE, Ga. — In searching for a new head baseball coach, Gainesville didn't have to look too far.
Gainesville athletic director Adam Lindsey tabbed former Major League Baseball players and Gainesville Hall of Famers Cris Carpenter and Micah Owings to take over the program, vacated last month by Adam Miller.
Miller is now an assistant athletic director at the school.
"This isn't about bringing in two former professional athletes so our student-athletes can learn what it takes to play at that level," Lindsey said. "This is about bringing in two former Red Elephant athletes who are going to instill what it takes to play to the level of excellence on which Gainesville baseball built its reputation."
Carpenter, a 1984 Gainesville graduate, will serve as head coach, while Owings, who graduated in 2002, will be the director of program operations.
Carpenter served as pitching coach on Gainesville's back-to-back state title teams in 2001 and 2002. Before his time as a coach for the Red Elephants, he was a three-sport athlete at Gainesville. The former Georgia Athlete of the Year led the Gainesville football team to the state semifinals as quarterback, the basketball team to its second-straight state title as point guard, and the baseball team to a region title as a senior. A two-time all-American relief pitcher at the University of Georgia, Carpenter spent eight seasons in Major League Baseball.
"It's always been an honor to be a part of Gainesville baseball and be a Red Elephant," Carpenter said. "Having been gone (from coaching) since 2005, it's going to be great to be back out there, and a special honor to get to do it with two guys I coached."
Micah Owings spent just two years at GHS, but his impact was long-lasting and historic as a player. In his junior and senior baseball seasons, Owings led the Red Elephants to two state championships, amassing a 24-2 record as a starting pitcher, hitting 40 home runs, and setting the state record for 25 homers in a season in 2002. He was named Georgia Player of the Year and was selected as a first-team high school All-American by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.
"Today is a great day to be a Red Elephant, a blessed day," Owings said. "It's been 20 years since I've put the Gainesville uniform on, and it's a blessing to get to wear it once again alongside my best friends Carp and Jon Mark. This opportunity goes deeper for me because it means giving back to the community that gave so much to me and has remained my home. There is no greater tradition that I know of in sports than the Red Elephant tradition, and I'm ready to work."
Despite being drafted in the second round by the Colorado Rockies in the 2002 MLB June Amateur Draft, Owings decided to play for his father's alma mater, Georgia Tech. In 2003, he was named ACC Rookie of the Year and first-team All-ACC. In 2004, he transferred to Tulane University. The following season, he was named Conference USA Player of the Year and led the Green Wave to the College World Series. After college, the Arizona Diamondbacks drafted Owings in the third round of the 2005 MLB June Amateur Draft. He spent six seasons in the Major Leagues.
