Hopper Named Head Baseball Coach at Bear Creek High School

After one of the most distinguished playing careers in school history, former Husker All-American Matt Hopper is up for a new challenge, as he was recently named head coach at his alma mater, Bear Creek (Colo.) High School.

"It exciting and it is something I am looking forward to," Hopper said. "I’m looking forward to teaching the kids and using the experiences that I have had at Nebraska and with the Phillies organization."

Hopper served as junior varsity coach at Mullen (Colo.) High School in 2004 after suffering an injury playing minor league baseball with the Philadephia Phillies organization. Hopper said playing and learning under coaches such as Mike Anderson, Rob Childress and Dave Van Horn helped him build a solid foundation of baseball knowledge.

Hopper, whose team begins indoor hitting in December, said that his biggest challenge as a head coach is running the day-to-day operations of the program, including purchasing equipment and jerseys to finding practice times.

Hopper, who played at Nebraska from 2000 to 2003, helped the Huskers to two Big 12 regular-season titles (2001 and 2003) and two College World Series appearances (2001-02). He earned his degree in business administration from Nebraska in 2003.

"I’m probably more excited for him than he is," Nebraska Head Coach Mike Anderson said. "Matt has the potential be an exceptional coach and has wealth of experience he can draw upon, not only in baseball but also in life, to teach kids."

At Nebraska, Hopper finished his career as the school and Big 12 leader in nearly every offensive category, including hits (338), runs scored (246), homers (64), RBIs (271) and total bases (591). The only three-time all-conference selection in school history, Hopper was chosen as the Big 12's Player of the Year in 2003, batting .382 with 22 homers and 66 RBIs. He led the Big 12 in both homers and slugging percentage (.717), while ranking among the league’s top-10 in nearly every offensive category.

The team begins instructional hitting in December with the season opener slated for March.