TYLER, TEXAS — The University of Texas at Tyler baseball program has announced the return of former Patriot standout Rawley Hector as an assistant coach, bringing one of the program's most decorated recent players back to East Texas.
Hector returns to UT Tyler after a standout playing career with the Patriots and experience working with USA Baseball, bringing pitching, player development and baseball operations experience back to the program.
"Rawley is a tremendous addition to our staff, and we are excited to welcome him back to UT Tyler," head coach Taylor White said. "He is an extremely hard worker who loves the game of baseball and, more importantly, loves people and building relationships. Rawley has great knowledge of the game and brings a wealth of knowledge that will make a tremendous impact on our players and our program. I am thrilled that he is back in East Texas and he will be a huge part of our continued success."
A native of Van Alstyne, Texas, Hector spent the final two seasons of his playing career at UT Tyler from 2024 to 2025 and played a key role in one of the most successful stretches in program history.
Hector was a key part of the Patriots' historic 2025 season, helping UT Tyler make its first ever trip to the NCAA Division II World Series in Cary, North Carolina. His success on the mound was central to that senior campaign, when he started all 17 games in which he appeared and worked 87 innings. Hector posted a 10 and 2 record with a 3.10 ERA and a career high 82 strikeouts while issuing just 20 walks. He recorded 10 strikeouts against Sul Ross State on April 11, 2025.
His 2025 campaign earned him numerous accolades, including D2CCA First Team All South Central Region, ABCA Rawlings First Team All South Central Region, NCBWA Second Team All South Central Region, All Lone Star Conference First Team and the Lone Star Conference Scholar Athlete Award. He was also named to the Lone Star Conference All Academic Team and earned NCBWA South Central Region and Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week honors.
Hector's junior season was equally impressive. In 2024, he appeared and started in 13 games and pitched 73 innings, striking out 56 batters while holding opponents to a .240 batting average. He finished the season with a 2.95 ERA and earned ABCA Rawlings Division II Third Team All American, ABCA Rawlings South Central Region Pitcher of the Year, D2CCA Third Team All American, D2CCA South Central Region Pitcher of the Year and NCBWA South Central Region Pitcher of the Year honors.
Following his playing career, Hector continued to build his baseball experience through USA Baseball. He served as the Coordinator of Baseball Operations with USA Baseball, where he scouted talent nationwide for National Teams, provided operational and administrative support for the Collegiate National Team program, assisted coaches with pitcher planning and player analysis and supported the USA Baseball staff and coaches with event operations. Where he previously served as an operations intern with the USA Baseball 18U National Team in 2025.
Hector has also worked as a pitching coach with VeloDoc and Dulins Dodgers Prime, assisting with pitcher development, velocity and movement patterns while utilizing Trackman for pitch development. He also served as a Site Director for Five Tool Baseball, overseeing tournament operations across multiple fields and managing schedules and event staff.
Now, Hector returns to the program that helped shape his career with the opportunity to impact the next generation of Patriots.
"I am fired up and honored to come back and help further the tradition of excellence that UT Tyler Baseball has built. This place gave me a love for baseball that I didn't know existed, but more importantly, it helped shape me into the man I am today. The relationships I've built here, with coaches, teammates, and people throughout this university, are something I'll always be grateful for, and getting the opportunity to come back and continue building those relationships means a lot to me. There's some unfinished business here for my former teammates and I, and that's to bring a National Championship back to UT Tyler."
Hector earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from UT Tyler's Soules College of Business in May 2025, graduating magna cum laude with a 3.80 GPA. He was named the Lone Star Conference Student Athlete of the Year for the 2024 to 2025 academic year and the UT Tyler Male Athlete of the Year for 2023 to 2024.
With his playing career behind him and a growing coaching and player development résumé ahead of him, Hector now begins the next chapter of his baseball career back where much of his success was built at UT Tyler.
