CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- Moving on up from being a standout on the local diamonds, a Bradley County man has accepted a position with an NCAA College World Series finalist program.
Former Walker Valley and Cleveland State standout, Caleb Longley is a new hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at Texas A&M University's national runner-up baseball program, where joins the staff of new Aggie head coach Michael Early.
"I've been blessed to get the opportunities I have.
The Lord has been opening things up for us," related Longley, who was an All-Conference performer at East Tennessee State before playing a couple of professional seasons.
"I'm only 29 and have had opportunities that are unbelievable. Looking forward to this chance to reunite with (new Aggie head coach) Michael Earley, who took a chance on me and gave me my first shot (five years ago) at Arizona State."
Texas A&M had to settle for the runner-up trophy after pushing top-ranked Tennessee to a third and deciding game in the College World Series final earlier this month and then had to endure the departure of former head coach Jim Schlossnagle and several assistant coaches to the University of Texas.
Although he slated to go with his former boss, Earley instead applied for and got the Texas A&M top spot and quickly decided to bring Longley in to help him, who ironically spent the last three years with the Longhorns.
"I was in College Station (Texas) Sunday (June 30), expecting him (Earley) to get the job Monday. We needed to be ready hit the ground running as we only had a couple of days to recruit from the (NCAA transfer) portal before the dead period hit," related Longley.
"We've secured one of the best lineups on paper. Now all they have to do is perform on the field," he said as half of the 14 Aggies who had announced they were in the portal decided to return with the hire of the very popular Earley, plus the new coaches have been able to add some key pieces with incoming transfers.
"A&M is a great program at the highest level and we want to continue to build on what they have and where they've been," remarked Longley.
After his playing days were over, Longley is the creator and CEO of MARV training — a unique multidimensional training tool focused on hitting and arm care routines that is used across numerous sports across the country, including MLB, NBA, NFL and numerous NCAA Division I sports (football, baseball, softball, volleyball), Longley is well known for his coaching abilities and knowledge of the game.
"With us still having the sports equipment business, which (his wife) Demi and my parents (longtime Cleveland State head baseball coach Steve and local successful businesswomen Angie Longley) help out with, that allows me to be able to take the opportunities I have. That's why I took a chance going to Arizona State (in 2020), not knowing if it would work out," he explained.
After working a couple of seasons with Early on the Sun Devil staff, Longley moved to Texas for the past three years.
"He (Early) didn't know me, but after we met and he interviewed me, he decided to take a chance on me, for which I'm truly grateful," the Bradley County native related.
Moving to Texas, Longley worked with the outfielders and hitters and added the role of recruiting coordinator. Joining the program prior to the 2022 season, he helped lead the Longhorns to three of the most productive offensive seasons in program history.
Longley previously worked with childhood friend Austin Herink, a former Cleveland High and ETSU standout quarterback, as a trainer where they trained several NFL and NCAA Power 5 quarterbacks, while being heavily involved in the draft preparation for First Round Pick Dwayne Haskins in 2019 and Jalen Hurts in 2020.
During his time working with quarterbacks, Longley developed custom arm care, arm strengthening and activation regimens used by NFL and NCAA quarterbacks. He developed the Quarterback Improvement Curriculum as well as Throwing Program used by numerous quarterbacks across the globe.
He was also the former owner and founder of the High Intent Training, a baseball player development center in Nashville. There he took a holistic approach to training and customizing development plans for each individual athlete. While at "HIT Nashville" Longley was one of the first people in the country to get certified and publish an article for OnBaseU.
Although he admits he'd like to one day be a head coach, Longley is very happy in his current roles.
"I don't know what the future holds, what He (the Lord) has in store, but I'm truly thankful for the opportunities He has given me and will do my best to help A&M be the best program possible," Longley summarized.