Jake Combs is in his third season as an assistant coach at College of Charleston and works with the Cougar outfielders while assisting with the hitters.
Combs has helped the Cougars see their fortunes climb over the past two years, including 34 wins and berths in the past two CAA Tournaments. His group of outfielders were among the best defensively in the conference, committing only three errors in 190 total chances in 2022.
He also helped the Charleston program put together two strong recruiting classes, including the 2021 group that was ranked No. 21 in the nation and second among non-Division I schools by Extra Inning Softball.
Combs came to Charleston after serving as a graduate assistant on the first coaching staff in Clemson softball history. The Tigers were 63-16 over the 2020-21 seasons, including a 44-8 record in 2021, the ACC regular season title and two wins at the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional.
Prior to his stint at Clemson, Combs spent five years working with the softball program at Indiana and was the volunteer assistant coach in 2019. That year the Hoosiers went 36-21 and entered the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll for the first time since 1996, debuting at No. 24 and spending six straight weeks ranked among the nation’s elite.
Indiana defeated two Top 10 teams in the same season for the first time in program history with wins over No. 6 Georgia and No. 10 LSU. The Hoosiers also hosted the Big Ten Softball Tournament for the first time, with Combs assisting in the operation of running the event.
Before joining the coaching staff, Combs was a student manager for four years and was involved in all aspects of the Indiana program. He was also an assistant coach for the Indiana Magic Gold and Indiana Dreams travel ball teams for five summers.
Combs graduated from Indiana in 2018 with a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology and earned his Master of Science degree in Athletic Leadership from Clemson in May 2021.
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