Following a season in which his offense set a new school record for home runs, Virginia Tech head coach Pete D’Amour may have hit one of his own with his postseason hire of a pitching coach.
On Thursday, D’Amour announced that Josh Johnson is joining the Hokies after spending the last four years at Mississippi State. In addition to serving as the Bulldogs’ pitching coach, Johnson was also their associate head and recruiting coordinator.
"Josh possesses everything I was looking for in an assistant,” D’Amour said in the program’s press release. “He's been an associate head coach for a Super Regional team, his players improve year after year, he's always learning and he fits our culture. There aren't many pitching coaches in the country that utilize and are as versed in technology as Josh. We've added one of the premier pitching coaches in the country to our program.”
Justin McLeod, the National Softball Editor of Extra Innings Softball, agreed with D’Amour. “Josh is brilliant,” McLeod told Tech Sideline. “He’s got some innovation outside of your typical pitching coach.”
Johnson made an immediate impact on the Bulldogs pitching staff when he was hired in August 2019. A group that finished last or second-to-last in nearly every pitching category in the SEC in 2019 was fantastic in 2020. MSU was second in the conference in ERA (1.36), third in home runs allowed (nine) and set school records in strikeouts per seven innings (9.27) and opponents’ batting average (.158).
In four years at Mississippi State, Johnson’s teams finished in the top five of the SEC in strikeouts, averaging 7.49 strikeouts per seven innings. In 2023, the staff also led the league in fewest home runs allowed (24).
During the 2022 postseason, the Bulldogs qualified for their first Super Regional in program history, upsetting No. 2 Florida State in Tallahassee by sweeping a Sunday doubleheader from the Seminoles. That staff was led by Annie Willis, who was selected as the No. 7 overall pick in the Women's Professional Fastpitch (WPF) Draft. In a recent interview, Willis was very complimentary of the coaching she received from Johnson.
“He is someone who brought a completely different side of pitching to light for me and made me think about pitching in ways that I never would have done on my own,” Willis told WPF News. “He is constantly learning and teaching his pitchers everything he can so that we all can be the best that we can be. Josh is someone that I will always be able to go back to regarding pitching, or really anything, and he will always be willing to help me.”
Johnson’s Mississippi State bio credits him with bringing “advanced technology and analytics to the Bulldogs’ approach to player development.” He was “pursuing his doctorate in biomechanics at Mississippi State while working on research with State’s Athlete Engineering department utilizing motion capture technology.”
Prior to his time in Starkville, Johnson spent four years at Ball State. His staff registered 300-plus strikeouts in each of his final three seasons — all of which ranked among the top five single-season marks in program history — and the team’s ERA stayed below 3.00 all the while.
Johnson served as the pitching coach at UTEP in 2014 and was the top assistant and pitching coach at Louisiana in 2013, helping the Ragin’ Cajuns to the NCAA Super Regionals.
He started his coaching career as the head coach at Faulkner State Community College (2010-12) where his 119-60 career record made him the winningest coach in program history. Under his leadership, the program produced 14 NJCAA All-Americans and broke every team and individual batting, base-running and pitching record in school history.
Johnson, who hails from Oregon, Wis., won 14 varsity letters at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, where he earned his bachelor’s in psychology in 2000 and his master’s in applied psychology in 2003. He was a 1998 First Team All-Conference selection in baseball and also earned letters in cross country and track & field. In 2023, he still holds the school record in the indoor 1,000m run (2:31.92).
Johnson has experience at a high level, too. From 2004-17, he was a pitcher and an outfielder in the North American Fastpitch Association (NAFA). He was a 16-time NAFA All-World Team selection and was the association’s Most Valuable Player in 2014. He was inducted into the NAFA Hall of Fame in 2013.