Sometimes the numbers speak for themselves.
At Crowder Community College in Missouri, they certainly do.
Since 2010, the Roughriders have won 40 or more games in full seasons in every season with the exception of 2015.
Last spring, the Roughriders reached the Junior College World Series, finished with a record of 55-8 and 16 players moved on to four-year schools.
Now El Dorado standouts Austin Jobe and Rhett Richardson hope to add to the winning tradition at Crowder.
On Wednesday, the duo signed with Crowder, and they are excited about the opportunity.
“It all started with the (American) Legion baseball tournament. I threw pretty well there and I went to some more camps,” Richardson said. “I wound up getting my velo(city) up quite a bit. I went to Crowder and visited and it was just the place for home. I loved the coaching staff.”
Jobe was verbally committed to Arkansas, but decided to go the two-year route.
“The main thing was from the decommitting from Arkansas was I wanted the opportunity to play right away,” Jobe said. “Instead of going to a four-year and sitting my first two years, going up to Crowder and getting the opportunity to possibly play my first year, but definitely my second year was huge. Arkansas might get to play a midweek game here and there, but Crowder, since you’re only competing against freshman and sophomore classes, that’s a huge opportunity to get reps, not just scrimmage reps, not just in the weight room here and there in a four-year, but every single day, hard work, reps on the field and in the weight room.”
Richardson said the junior college route was the one he wanted to take.
“I wanted to go JUCO. I’ve had some teammates go JUCO before, and they all told me how much they loved it,” Richardson said. “I knew before the recruiting process really started that I wanted to go JUCO. I really love the JUCO route because of all of the work you put in and just how much tougher it makes you.”
Competition both for playing time and in Crowder’s region were pivotal in their decisions.
“That’s exactly what it was,” Richardson said. “If I went to a four-year school, I could get redshirted, but if I went to a two-year, I would have the chance to play my first year and I’m confident enough to hope I can get in there and get some reps.”
Said Jobe, “Junior college is no joke, especially the conference Crowder is in. They’ve gone to the World Series three years, and they got there last year. It’s no joke. It’s the real deal.”
Crowder has had 34 players drafted and has sent dozens of players on to four-year schools during Travis Lallemand’s tenure as head coach, and player development was another factor that was a part of their decision.
“I feel if I go the two-year route, I can develop more as a player and really grow more into my body, then get better and eventually go D1. That’s what I’m hoping,” Richardson said. “Crowder is known for developing. They have a great reputation with that.”
Jobe added, “That was huge. Going for one or two years and getting drafted is huge. I have a lot of buddies up there right now at Crowder that I’ve played with and against. I’ve stayed in contact with them and they said it was one of the best, if not the best junior college for player development. They said it was unreal.”
Jobe also got help from former El Dorado catcher Jared Rhodes, who is at JUCO powerhouse San Jacinto in Texas.
“I respect that man more than anyone I’ve ever met,” Jobe said. “When I first had the thought of going JUCO after talking to Crowder for the first time, I didn’t even talk to my parents, that was the first person I talked to right there was Jared because I knew if anybody was going to say something, it was going to be him. He’s not scared to tell me what I need to hear. He’ll get straight to the point and what you need to hear. He’ll let you know. He’s been there. He knows what it’s about.”
So what did Rhodes say?
“He said if you want to get better, go there,” Jobe said. “Those were his exact words. He said if you want to get the real deal, get stronger and get better, that’s where you need to be.”
Richardson and Jobe have seen limited time on the mound over the last year.
In Richardson’s case, it was as close as one can come without needing Tommy John surgery.
“I stretched my UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) as far as I could go without tearing it,” Richardson said.
Richardson rested his elbow and came back to pitch for the El Dorado Oilers during the American Legion season.
The rest coupled with the El Dorado baseball program’s workout regimen gave Richardson a noticeable bump in velocity with the senior saying he works around 85-87 miles per hour while topping out at 90 after residing in the low-80s last year.
“Coach (Cannon) Lester told me when I got over here to really eat and lift a lot, and I just never really bought into it,” Richardson said.
“This past year, I really got into it. I was eating probably 5,000, 6,000 calories a day, and I would get into the gym every day for an hour and a half and got a lot stronger. That’s where it bumped me up the most.”
Jobe did not pitch for the Wildcats while recovering from labrum surgery, but pitched for the Arkansas Sticks during the summer and said he is healthy.
“I’m 100 percent,” Jobe said. “I’m wheeling and dealing.”
He recently pitched in the WWBA Championships and was happy with the results.
“It was good,” Jobe said. “The slider was one of the best it’s ever been. It was a really good outing. I was pleased with how it went.”
Both are excited for the upcoming season, which will be the first with Jeff Burson at the helm.
“It was exactly what we needed at the right time,” Jobe said. “We needed somebody to get us in line. This year, we’re going to be something special. We have nine seniors, eight that have the chance to start. You don’t really get that at any other school, but him coming down here and being the person that he is and him being a strict and hard coach, he got us in line that first week and we’ve been rolling ever since.”
Said Richardson, who also played for Burson at Smackover, “We all loved coach Lester, but he went to go be at SouthArk. Coach Burson is really the guy I really and truly wanted since the day the job opened. I got really close to him at Smackover. He taught me a ton, and now he’s here and teaching us a ton. We’re looking to make a run this year.”
When asked if attending Arkansas was still a possibility once his time at Crowder is over, Jobe said he would see how things played out first.
“Who knows?” Jobe said. “It’s where the cards fall. I’m open to whatever. Anywhere after Crowder is a plus. Baseball is not guaranteed. Anything more than sitting at the house on the couch than watching baseball is a plus.”
Although they still have their senior seasons to play, Jobe said he is excited about getting to play along side Richardson in college.
“I’m pumped,” Jobe said. “When he committed, I was like, ‘Alright.’ Then I got to thinking, ‘I could go play two more years with this kid, and I’ve been playing with him since I was six.’ You don’t get that or hear that just every day. It’s huge.”