Tennessee first fielded a baseball team in 1897 and Vols Wire takes a look at some of the program’s most successful coaches.
This installment will look at the tenure of Cyrus S.W. Anderson.
A career-long minor league player, Anderson was hired at Tennessee in 1948. He remained on Rocky Top until 1952.
In five years at Tennessee, Anderson compiled a head coaching record of 49-51-1. Despite his sub-.500 overall coaching mark, Anderson holds a place in UT baseball lore as his first winning season was a monumental one.
After winning just 18 games in his first three years as head coach, the program had a breakout campaign in 1951. The Vols won the Southeastern Conference championship and made its first trip to Omaha and the College World Series.
That year, the Big Orange went 20-3 and posted a 16-1 SEC mark. Anderson was named the conference’s Coach of the Year.
The Vols had College World Series wins against Springfield, Princeton and Utah after dropping its first game to the Redskins (now the Utes), 7-1.
Tennessee reached the championship game where it dropped a narrow, 3-2, decision to Oklahoma.
The Sooners also won national championships in football and wrestling during the 1950-51 academic year.
As a player, Anderson made minor league stops in Memphis and Chattanooga in the Volunteer State.
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