Fort Walton Beach High School has hired Shawn Snyder as its new head baseball coach, bringing 28 years of head coaching experience and over 485 career wins to the Vikings program.
- Athletic Director Holly McDaniel announced the hire, calling Snyder “an outstanding addition to our athletic program.”
“We are excited to announce the hiring of our new Head Baseball Coach, whose extensive experience and proven track record make him an outstanding addition to our athletic program,” McDaniel said.
Snyder has been named Oklahoma Regional Baseball Coach of the Year during his career.
As a student-athlete, Snyder earned a football scholarship as a quarterback at Tulane University in 1991 before continuing his athletic career at the University of Oklahoma, where he pitched on a baseball scholarship in 1994 and 1995. He was a member of Oklahoma’s 1994 College World Series national championship team and also competed in the 1995 College World Series.
- He holds a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Oklahoma.
In addition to his baseball coaching career, Snyder has 28 years of experience as an assistant football coach, including stints at Seminole High School in Oklahoma and most recently serves as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Vikings.
“Excited to be the head baseball coach at Fort Walton Beach High School, so thankful for the administration for giving me this opportunity,” Snyder said. “It’s an honor to be chosen to lead this program, and the expectations we set for ourselves and this program will be held to a high standard.”
Last week, Tony Stevens stepped down as head coach after two years with the program to spend more time with his family.
“The last two years we have had a really young team playing mostly 9th and 10th graders,” Stevens said. “The coach coming in will have some good talent on the field.”
Snyder said he is ready to get to work immediately.
“Looking forward to hitting the ground running and getting to work for next season,” he said.
