College Baseball Foundation announces addition of Wayne Graham Award for Teaching Excellence

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- The College Baseball Foundation (CBF) Board of Trustees is pleased to announce its newest honor, the Wayne Graham Award for Teaching Excellence. The award, which will be presented annually, is a tribute to Graham, the longtime Hall of Fame college baseball coach at Rice University.

Widely considered one of the greatest teachers in the history of college baseball, Graham’s legacy extends well beyond his own distinguished record. His influence on the game and the thousands of players, coaches and others he mentored within college baseball is immeasurable. Graham passed away in September at age 88.

The Wayne Graham Award for Teaching Excellence will be presented to the coach, at any college level, who demonstrates the qualities of teaching, developing and coaching college baseball players that prepare them for life after their baseball careers. The award will be voted on by a panel of coaches, players, umpires and administrators who possess significant background and experience in the sport.

The inaugural award recipient will be recognized following the 2025 season. Wayne Graham Teaching Excellence Award winners will also be recognized at the future College Baseball Hall of Fame being designed by the world class architects at Populous at the iconic Museum at Prairiefire in Overland Park, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City.

“Wayne always took great pride in the pursuit of excellence through the development of the individual within the framework of a team,” Tanya Graham, the wife of the late Wayne Graham, said. “He believed he was a teacher first and cared about his players’ mental growth as well. He would be honored to have this award in his name. I am very appreciative of this special recognition The College Baseball Foundation and Baseball Hall of Fame has chosen to bestow upon him.”

Those attributes were something CBF Vice Chair and former Rice Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan had an opportunity to observe in his time working alongside coach Graham as the Director of Athletics at Rice.

“Wayne was one of a kind in the most endearing and positive ways,” Greenspan said. “He was a baseball savant, loyal friend, family man and mentor to many. I was honored to learn from and work with him.”

Graham compiled a 1,173-528-2 record in twenty-seven seasons at Rice. When he took over the program in 1992, Rice had never won a conference championship in its previous 79 years. Graham turned Rice into a perennial conference champion, a fixture at the top of the national rankings and a familiar entry into the field at the College World Series.

He led the Owls to 23 consecutive NCAA appearances from 1995-2017, to 11 Super Regionals in the first 15 years of the expanded playoff format (1999-2013), guided Rice to seven appearances in the College World Series in 12 years, and gave Rice its first NCAA team championship in 2003 when Rice downed Stanford 14-2 to claim the College World Series title.

Along the way, Graham turned South Main into a haven for college talent, producing five national players of the year, 28 first-team All-Americans, seven conference players of the year, six conference pitchers of the year, 19 first-round draft picks--- including the first overall pick in 1997 in Matt Anderson -- and sending 41 players to the Major Leagues.

Lance Berkman, who was named the NCBWA Player of the Year in 1997, joined Graham in the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015. Anthony Rendon, who won the Dick Howser Award in 2010 in his sophomore season under Graham, became the 25th of his players to join him in the Rice Athletics Hall of Fame when he was inducted in 2022.

Graham was inducted into the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame at Fort Worth in 2003. In 2004 he was named one of Houston's 38 Sports Legends to coincide with the city hosting Super Bowl XXXVIII. He was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Conference USA Hall of Fame in 2019.

Graham played baseball for two seasons under the legendary Bibb Falk at Texas before embarking on an 11-year professional career as a third baseman and outfielder with the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets organizations.

A campaign was launched by the CBF to endow the Wayne Graham Award for Teaching Excellence. Proceeds from the endowment will help support the presentation of the award.

Those interested in supporting the endowment may send a financial gift to:

Wayne Graham Endowment (cbhalloffame.org)

You may also send a check made payable to the College Baseball Foundation and note that it is for the Wayne Graham Award Endowment. Please mail to:

College Baseball Hall of Fame
Attn: Wayne Graham Award Endowment
5501 W. 135th Street, Suite 2320-3
Overland Park, KS 66223

About the College Baseball Foundation

The purpose of the College Baseball Foundation (CBF) is to preserve, elevate and advance the game; to inspire the next generation; to teach those who love college baseball about its rich history and traditions; to celebrate those who make college baseball special; and to honor those who have come before us, and built the foundation upon which college baseball thrives today. The CBF presents the Brooks Wallace Award (Nation’s Most Outstanding Shortstop), the National Pitcher of the Year, the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year, the Skip Bertman National Coach of the Year and the George H.W. Bush Distinguished Alumnus Award. To date, 97 individuals have been honored with one of these awards.