Ryan Wheeler recently completed his ninth season on the Saint Joseph's staff and his fifth as the Hawks' associate head coach in 2023. He has been the Hawks' recruiting coordinator throughout his time on Hawk Hill as well. His tenure on Fritz Hamburg's staff is the third-longest stint for an assistant coach in program history.
A well-respected figure around the game, Wheeler has been recognized by his peers as the top recruiting coordinator in the Atlantic 10 in a survey conducted by D1Baseball.com. The Hawks have appeared in four Atlantic 10 postseasons during his time in the Crimson and Gray, winning 20 games or more in each of his full seasons at SJU, and claimed the program's first-ever A-10 regular season title in 2023.
Wheeler has worked with three different Hawks who have heard their names called in the MLB Draft: Deon Stafford, Jr., in 2017, Tim Brennan in 2018, and Andrew Cossetti in 2022. In addition, Stafford earned both Atlantic 10 and ECAC Player of the Year honors in 2016 while working with Wheeler, and Cossetti was named the NCBWA District 1 Player of the Year in 2022. Both Stafford and Cossetti set the program's single-season home run record under Wheeler's tutelage, with Cossetti breaking the program's all-time mark during his career as well.
The Hawks have seen unprecedented levels of success as a team during Wheeler's tenure, reaching three consecutive Atlantic 10 Championships in 2021, 2022, and 2023 after never before reaching the postseason in consecutive seasons. He was also a part of the staff that helped guide the Hawks to the Liberty Bell Classic championship at Citizens Bank Park in 2016.
Before coming to Hawk Hill, Wheeler spent the previous three seasons as the head coach at Temple. Wheeler, who shared the 2014 Philadelphia Big 5 Baseball Coach of the Year award with Hamburg, led the Owls to an appearance in the first-ever American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship in 2014 as well as regular season victories over nationally ranked Houston and Louisville.
Prior to his stint with the Owls, he spent five years as an assistant in the Atlantic 10 with the University of Richmond, where he helped guide the Spiders to the Atlantic 10 championship game in 2011.
The Harleysville, Pennsylvania, native began his coaching career with a nine-year stint at William & Mary. He was on the staff in 2001 when the Tribe won its first-ever Colonial Athletic Association title and a berth in the NCAA Regionals. Under his tutelage, William & Mary ranked 10th in the nation in team average and 14th in runs scored per game in 2004.
Between stops at William & Mary and Richmond, Wheeler spent the 2006 season as an assistant at Penn. Prior to coming to Hawk Hill, Wheeler helped develop more than a dozen players who became MLB Draft selections, including former major leaguers Chris Ray (2003) and Bill Bray (2004) and former All-Big 5 slugger Steve Nikorak (2012).
Wheeler’s responsibilities at Saint Joseph’s include serving as the Hawks’ hitting coach and working with SJU’s infielders. Wheeler also assists with the organization of camps and clinics. His son Jack serves as a manager with the Hawks as well.
