Temple University Athletics
Temple Mourns Passing of Legendary Baseball Coach James “Skip” Wilson
7.26.22 | General
PHILADELPHIA - James "Skip" Wilson, who led Temple Baseball to a pair of College World Series appearances and 1,034 wins in 46 seasons as the program's head coach, passed away today. He was 92.
"This is truly a sad day for Temple University and Temple Athletics, but more importantly for the Wilson family who are in our thoughts and prayers," said Temple Vice President and Director of Athletics Arthur Johnson. "Although I never had the honor of meeting Skip Wilson, I know of his amazing accomplishments. He was not only one of the greatest coaches in Temple history, but in collegiate baseball. His legacy, however, will be in the lives he touched while leading the program. He will be greatly missed."
The all-time winningest coach in any sport at Temple, Wilson guided the Owls to 12 NCAA Tournaments and 12 conference championships during his tenure (1960 thru 2005). He captured his 1,000th win on March 14, 2004 when the Owls defeated Manhattan, 10-9, and finished his career with a record of 1,034-824-27 (.556).
The veteran mentor had a wealth of success during the 1970s. He led Temple to two College World Series appearances in 1972 (third place) and 1977 (eighth) and earned four more NCAA bids during the decade. The Owls won the Middle Atlantic Conference title in 1972 and 1973 and captured four straight East Coast Conference championships from 1975-1978.
The Cherry and White moved to the Atlantic 10 in 1983 and immediately made its presence felt. Paced by future major leaguers John Marzano and Jeff Manto, Temple won the A-10 and reached the NCAAs in 1983 and 1984.
Wilson made his last appearance in the NCAA Tournament following a dramatic 2001 season. After opening the year 0-14, the Owls would then post a 24-14 record the remainder of the regular season. The team won the Atlantic 10 and reached the NCAAs for the final time in his career.
Named the District Coach of the Year three times (1972, 1977, 1978), Wilson was honored by the University on February 16, 1981, when he was inducted into the Temple Athletics Hall of Fame. He would later have the distinction of being inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame on January 11, 1987, and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame on April 7, 1994.
On May 15, 2006, Temple named its new baseball field on its Ambler campus, Skip Wilson Field.
A Philadelphia native, Wilson had over 100 players sign professional contracts. Names of note are Philadelphia's own Joe Kerrigan, former pitching coach for the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox manager; Manto, who played 10 seasons in the big leagues with seven teams; Marzano, a former major leaguer who served as a post-game analyst for Phillies games on Comcast SportsNet; Ed Wade, former general manager for the Philadelphia Phillies; former Detroit Tigers outfielder Bobby Higginson; and Steve Javie, a former NBA referee.
Wilson graduated from Manayunk's St. John's High School in 1948 and went to Georgetown University on a basketball scholarship. But the next year, scouts took an interest in his baseball skills and he signed with the Philadelphia Athletics. Wilson spent several years in the A's farm system before enrolling at Temple in 1951.
Soon after, he received a draft notice from the United States Army and spent two years in the military. After graduating from Temple in 1958, Wilson coached the Owls freshman basketball team through the 1970--71 season.
He added baseball responsibilities in 1960, becoming Temple's head coach after serving one year as an assistant to former Owls athletic director Ernie Casale. Wilson, who earned his master's degree in 1961 from Temple in health and physical education, taught at Roxborough High School for 34 years before retiring from teaching in February 1992.
"This is truly a sad day for Temple University and Temple Athletics, but more importantly for the Wilson family who are in our thoughts and prayers," said Temple Vice President and Director of Athletics Arthur Johnson. "Although I never had the honor of meeting Skip Wilson, I know of his amazing accomplishments. He was not only one of the greatest coaches in Temple history, but in collegiate baseball. His legacy, however, will be in the lives he touched while leading the program. He will be greatly missed."
The all-time winningest coach in any sport at Temple, Wilson guided the Owls to 12 NCAA Tournaments and 12 conference championships during his tenure (1960 thru 2005). He captured his 1,000th win on March 14, 2004 when the Owls defeated Manhattan, 10-9, and finished his career with a record of 1,034-824-27 (.556).
The veteran mentor had a wealth of success during the 1970s. He led Temple to two College World Series appearances in 1972 (third place) and 1977 (eighth) and earned four more NCAA bids during the decade. The Owls won the Middle Atlantic Conference title in 1972 and 1973 and captured four straight East Coast Conference championships from 1975-1978.
The Cherry and White moved to the Atlantic 10 in 1983 and immediately made its presence felt. Paced by future major leaguers John Marzano and Jeff Manto, Temple won the A-10 and reached the NCAAs in 1983 and 1984.
Wilson made his last appearance in the NCAA Tournament following a dramatic 2001 season. After opening the year 0-14, the Owls would then post a 24-14 record the remainder of the regular season. The team won the Atlantic 10 and reached the NCAAs for the final time in his career.
Named the District Coach of the Year three times (1972, 1977, 1978), Wilson was honored by the University on February 16, 1981, when he was inducted into the Temple Athletics Hall of Fame. He would later have the distinction of being inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame on January 11, 1987, and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame on April 7, 1994.
On May 15, 2006, Temple named its new baseball field on its Ambler campus, Skip Wilson Field.
A Philadelphia native, Wilson had over 100 players sign professional contracts. Names of note are Philadelphia's own Joe Kerrigan, former pitching coach for the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox manager; Manto, who played 10 seasons in the big leagues with seven teams; Marzano, a former major leaguer who served as a post-game analyst for Phillies games on Comcast SportsNet; Ed Wade, former general manager for the Philadelphia Phillies; former Detroit Tigers outfielder Bobby Higginson; and Steve Javie, a former NBA referee.
Wilson graduated from Manayunk's St. John's High School in 1948 and went to Georgetown University on a basketball scholarship. But the next year, scouts took an interest in his baseball skills and he signed with the Philadelphia Athletics. Wilson spent several years in the A's farm system before enrolling at Temple in 1951.
Soon after, he received a draft notice from the United States Army and spent two years in the military. After graduating from Temple in 1958, Wilson coached the Owls freshman basketball team through the 1970--71 season.
He added baseball responsibilities in 1960, becoming Temple's head coach after serving one year as an assistant to former Owls athletic director Ernie Casale. Wilson, who earned his master's degree in 1961 from Temple in health and physical education, taught at Roxborough High School for 34 years before retiring from teaching in February 1992.
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