J.J. EDWARDS
Head Baseball Coach
J.J. Edwards joined the coaching staff in the fall of 2011 as the volunteer assistant and was promoted to assistant coach in the summer of 2012. Now in his 13th season on the staff, he will continue to work with the hitters and infielders. In the summer of 2016 he added the responsibilities of recruiting coordinator and in the summer of 2021 was promoted to associate head coach.
The 2023 campaign saw Wofford continue to succeed witha 40-19 record, just the program's second 40-win season. Wofford was 12-9 in SoCon action to place third in the league and ultimately advanced to the SoCon Championship for a second-straight season. First baseman Ryan Galanie was named SoCon Player of the Year and highlighted a duo of All-SoCon First-Teamers that also included Lucas Mahlstedt. The second team feautred four Terriers: Coulson Buchanan, Matthew Marchal, Cameron Gill and Dixon Black. Wofford led the league in walks (294), hits (617), on-base perrcentage (.422), runs (499), sacrifice bunts (86) and triples (18). The sac bunts led the nation and set a new single-season program record. Wofford's .314 batting average was second in the league and 13th nationally, and the Terriers swiped 153 bases to sit second in the SoCon and fifth in the nation. On top of sacrifices, Wofford set single-season program records for runs, hit by pitch (86) and fielding percentage (.978).
The Terriers reached new heights in the 2022 season with a 42-16-1 overall record, the most wins in progam history and the team's first 40-win season. The Terriers were 16-4-1 in league play to claim a second-straight Southern Conference Regular Season Championship. Five Terriers earned First-Team All-Southern Conference recognition, including Matthew Marchal, Lawson Hill, John Dempsey, Ryan Galanie and Brennen Dorighi. Hill was tabbed Player of the Year by the media. Dalton Rhadans and Josh Vitus were selected to the second team, and the All-Freshman Team featured Carter Bailey, Coulson Buchanan and Marshall Toole. Wofford made it to the championship series of the SoCon Torunament for the third time in program history but fell short to UNCG. The squad's .314 batting average led the conference, as did its 145 stolen bases.
The 2021 season saw Wofford win the first regular season Southern Conference Championship in school history. The team was 36-21 overall and 21-9 in league play, which were the most conference wins in school history. Outfielder Colin Davis was named SoCon Player of the Year and Elliot Carney was named SoCon Pitcher of the Year. They were joined by Dalton Rhadans, Jack Renwick, Lawson Hill and Nolen Hester receiving All-SoCon honors. Renwick and Trey Yunger were named to the All-Freshman Team. The Terriers had a .291 batting average that ranked second in the league, while four players had averages over .300. Among the NCAA leaders, Wofford was second in stolen bases, 20th in doubles and 14th in on base percentage.
In 2020, the team was 14-3 overall. The team was hitting .316 and had a .422 on base percentage, both of which were ranked first in the Southern Conference. Wofford was also leading the league in hits, runs, RBIs, walks and stolen bases before the season was cut short.
He was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Sacred Heart. Playing primarily in the infield, he was team captain in 2010 and 2011. In 2011, the team won the Northeastern Conference Championship. Edwards earned first team Northeastern Conference and first team New England honors in 2011 as he led the team with a .372 batting average and 80 hits. He had a .340 career batting average and was also named to the Northeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll in 2010 and 2011.
Prior to joining the Terriers he was an assistant coach for the Oneonta Outlaws of the NYCBL during the summer of 2011. He played in the NYCBL for three seasons with the Elmira Pioneers, earning first team honors in 2009.
A native of Endwell, New York, Edwards received his bachelor’s degree in history from Sacred Heart in 2010 and added a masters in the art of teaching in 2011. He is also a certified teacher. A standout in baseball and basketball, he was inducted in the Maine-Endwell High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018. Edwards and his wife, Melissa, have a daughter, James Marie, and reside in Spartanburg.
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Michael Picollo
Director of Player Development
Michael Picollo joined the Wofford coaching staff in July of 2024 as the director of player development after recently graduating from St. Joseph’s, where he was also a pitcher for three seasons.
Picollo began his playing career at UNC Wilmington, appearing in three games with the Seahawks from 2019-21. After transferring to St. Joe’s, the right-hander made 31 appearances with eight starts. Over 52.2 innings on the bump, he struck out 34 batters. Picollo’s first two seasons with the Hawks were under the direction of current Terrier pitching coach Pat Brown. In joining the Terrier staff, Picollo is making his initial foray into the coaching ranks. He has previously interned at Tread Athletics in the summer of 2023.
Picollo graduated from UNC Wilmington in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, and he added an MBA in business administration and management from St. Joseph’s University in 2024. He is the son of J.J. Picollo, the current general manager of the Kansas City Royals.
PAT BROWN
Assistant Baseball Coach
Pat Brown joined the Wofford staff as pitching coach in July of 2023. He completed his third season as the pitching coach at St. Joseph's in the spring of 2023. In each of his three seasons the Hawks reached the Atlantic 10 postseason, culminating in the program's first-ever A-10 regular season title in 2023.
"Pat has a proven track record of success and development with a pitching staff," said Edwards. "He is going to be a great addition to our staff and program. We happy to welcome him and his wife Katy to our Wofford Baseball family."
A number of Hawks have seen their careers rise to a new level under Brown's tutelage. In 2021, Hayden Seig went on to sign a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Angels organization. The following season, Matt McShane earned Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Freshman All-America honors and a place on the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team. Domenic Picone was named to the All-Conference Second Team in 2023, becoming just the fifth SJU starting pitcher to earn All-Conference honors since the Hawks joined the league 40 years earlier.
Brown joined the Hawks from Carson-Newman University, where he had been coaching since the summer of 2019. Prior to his stint in Tennessee, Brown spent two seasons at Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania, where he helped guide the Knights to a MAC Commonwealth title and an NCAA Tournament bid in 2017. Mike Boulanger and Joel Bartoni each earned First Team All-Conference honors in 2017 and 2018, respectively, with Bartoni nabbing a pair of All-Region nods as well.
Brown began his coaching career at Bloomsburg University after graduating from SUNY Oswego in 2015. The Liverpool, New York, native made 38 appearances out of the bullpen for the Lakers, notching four career saves and posting a 3.67 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 72.1 innings. He was a member of SUNY Oswego's NCAA Regional team as a senior.
HUDSON BYORICK
Assistant Baseball Coach
Hudson Byorick joined the staff in the fall of 2022 and enters his second season on the staff in 2024. A 2020 graduate of Wofford, Byorick returned to Spartanburg after a playing career with the Terriers.
Byorick's first season on the staff in 2023 saw Wofford post a 40-19 record with a 12-9 SoCon clip. It was Wofford's second-ever 40-win campaign. The Terriers returned to the SoCon Championship for the second-straight season. Ryan Galanie was named SoCon Player of the Year and was joined on the All-SoCon First Team by pitcher Lucas Mahlstedt. The second team included Coulson Buchanan, Matthew Marchal, Cameron Gill and Dixon Black. Three Terriers featured on the SoCon All-Freshman Team: Zac Cowan, Branton Little and Charlie Weber. Wofford's .314 batting average was second in the conference and 13th in the nation, and the Terriers topped the confernce in ERA with a 5.23 clip. With 2.38 walks allowed per nine innings, Wofford led the entirety of Division I baseball. The Terriers also topped the nation with 86 sacrifice bunts, a program record. With a fielding percentage of .978, Wofford led the SoCon and set a new single-season program record.
In two seasons as a player from 2019-20, Byorick made 77 starts in the outfield and played in 78 games overall. He owned a career .336 average with 93 hits, 53 RBI and 63 runs scored along with 11 stolen bases. Byorick then played a fifth season as a graduate transfer at West Virginia.
Prior to joining the Terriers, Byorick played at Pierce College where he earned West Division First-Team All-Star honors with a .335 average and three homers with 28 RBI. His 27 walks led the team.
Byorick graduated from Wofford College in 2020 with a degree in business economics. He and his wife married in the fall of 2022.
