Baseball | 3/31/2016 1:21:00 PM

Montclair, NJ – Longtime assistant coach Rich O'Connor has announced his retirement effective March 31. O'Connor, one of the longest tenured coaches in Montclair State history, spent the last 33 years with both the Red Hawk football and baseball teams.

O'Connor spent over three decades as a member of head coach Rick Giancola's staff coming to Montclair in 1983 and served the last 13 seasons as the Offensive Coordinator. In his tenure on Sprague Field at Montclair, the Red Hawks qualified for 13 postseason appearances, including nine NCAA Playoffs berths.

Prior to taking over as offensive coordinator, O'Connor served as offensive backfield and special teams coach where he guided many talented tailbacks in his career. And if one were to look at the MSU Top 10 Rushing list, many of the names there have been coached by O'Connor. Among those included are the top two names on the list - John Walker and Ron Lewis (the two combined for over 6,000 yards in their careers.) Equally as important to O'Connor were the MSU special teams units, which had been among the best in the NJAC year in and year out.

"Rich O'Connor has been a valued member of the Montclair State University athletic staff for the past 33 years.  It is impossible to calculate his many contributions to our department and particularly the football and baseball programs," said Director of Athletic Holly Gera. "Known affectionately as 'Coach O', Rich has taught, coached and mentored countless student athletes.  He has been a loyal, dedicated and hard-working staff member.  I have enjoyed working with him and am proud to call him a friend.  I wish Rich all the best in his retirement. He will be missed."

In the Spring, O'Connor spent 18 seasons with the Montclair State baseball team as the team's hitting instructor/third base coach and later Associate Head Coach before moving back to the gridiron full time in 2003 with the addition of spring practice for the MSU.

Joining the baseball program in 1985, O'Connor's team ranked among the best in Division III each season. Every team under his tutelage hit .316 or better which included a school-record .371 during his first season. It is a mark that still stands today. He was an integral part of all three NCAA Division III national championship teams (1987, 1993, 2000) and if you look at the all-time MSU Top 10 list for hitting, O'Connor coached nearly every named listed.

In 1987, Montclair's first national championship season, MSU batted .351 and belted 72 home runs, including 22 by John Deutsch, who would go on to set the record. Six years later, O'Connor's instruction was vital as the Red Hawks pounded out 111 doubles to lead the nation en route to a second NCAA title. Then came the 2000 season as O'Connor's hitters were among the best the program has ever season. Montclair finished ninth in Division III in hitting at .362 while leading the country in doubles (school-record 149), triples (34) and total bases (1,027).

O'Connor came to Montclair State with a wealth of athletic administrative and coach experience. Making his mark in the NJAC as an assistant at Ramapo College from 1978-81, he helped the Roadrunners to the NCAA Division III playoffs each year. He also served as the athletic director at Immaculate Conception High School in 1979 and served in the same capacity at East Orange High School from 1980-87. Those more familiar with O'Connor will remember his guiding St. Mary's High School to the New Jersey State baseball championship as the head coach in 1977.

A 1975 graduate of Bridgeport University, O'Connor was inducted into the Newark Hall of Fame in 2013 and has also been enshrined into the St. Mary's (Rutherford) Hall of Fame in 2010 and Essex County Coaches Hall of Fame in 2012. O'Connor was honored by the Essex County Chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame with a Coaches Award in 2009.