Jared Hood, who is a native of Marshall, Texas, enters his fifth year as the head coach and seventh at East Texas Baptist University after two years as an assistant coach. He has a strong coaching background that varies from summer ball to working with the Cleveland Indians as an associate scout and continues to take the program to higher levels.
Hood received his first chance to coach collegiately at Hill College as an assistant for two years. In those two years, he recruited three players who were Major League Baseball draftees and coached in a program that produced five MLB draft picks.
Coaching in the summer leagues, Hood made stops as an assistant coach for the Cooperstown Hawkeyes of the New York Collegiate Baseball League in Cooperstown, New York, as well as the Dallas Patriots 18U travel baseball program. He was also an associate scout for the Cleveland Indians.
As a college player, Hood started his playing career at Hill College before transferring to University of Texas Tyler. After two seasons with Hill College, he had a productive pair of seasons for the Texas-Tyler Patriots, twice earning ASC All-East Division recognition as an outfielder.
In total, Hood finished with a career batting average of .367 and 20 home runs and 99 RBI. In 2008, he hit .390 with 25 extra-base hits and 50 RBI en route to being named an ASC All-East Division First Team honoree. As a senior in 2009, he batted .345 with 13 home runs and 49 RBI, earning ASC All-East Division Second Team recognition. Hood served as a captain during the 2009 season as the Texas-Tyler baseball team won the ASC Championship Tournament and qualified for the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. He was selected to the ASC All-Tournament Team as a designated hitter.
Hood graduated from Texas Tyler in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in health and kinesiology, and later completed his master’s of education in health and kinesiology in 2015. Jared is married to his wife Madison and they have two daughters, Avynn and McClane.