Former Georgia Tech standout Wally Crancer is entering his sixth season as the Redbirds’ assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator in 2023-24 academic year.
Crancer helped lead the Redbirds to a 36-26 (14-7 MVC) record in his first season at Illinois State, in which they earned a share of the Missouri Valley Conference regular season title for the first time since 2013. The 36 wins was a 14-win improvement from the year prior and the most wins for an Illinois State team since 2013 (39 wins).
The Redbirds earned an at-large NCAA Tournament berth in 2019 and were placed in the Louisville regional, defeating both Big Ten regular season champs Indiana and No. 7 Louisville, before ultimately falling to Louisville in the first ISU appearance ever in a regional final. Louisville advanced to the Final Four of the College World Series where they were defeated by eventual champions No. 1 Vanderbilt, who Illinois State had also beaten earlier in the year in Nashville.
At the conclusion of the 2019 season, five 'Birds heard their names called in the MLB draft, including John Rave (Royals, 5th Round), Brent Headrick (Twins, 9th Round), Matt Walker (Tigers, 13th Round), Joe Aeilts (Rockies, 14th Round), and Jeff Lindgren (Marlins, 24th Round).
As an assistant coach at Purdue, Crancer served as the hitting coach and was tasked with the defensive instruction. The Boilermakers were the toughest team to strike out in the Big Ten during their 38-win season in 2018, and Crancer’s work with the hitters and leading role in defensive alignments helped propel the Boilermakers to a 21-3 stretch during the second half of the season. It led to a No. 2 seed at the Chapel Hill Regional, just Purdue's third NCAA Tournament berth in program history.
Many of Crancer's recruits were also a big part of a 19-win improvement in 2017, which ranked as the greatest turnaround in program history. Sixteen newcomers saw action in 2017, as Purdue became just the second Big Ten team since 1988 to win 10 more games in league play than the previous year, returning to the conference tournament in the process.
Prior to heading to West Lafayette, Crancer spent two seasons at his alma mater on the Georgia Tech staff in 2012 and 2013. As an assistant, he worked primarily with the outfielders, assisted the hitting coach and served as the first base coach. Georgia Tech won the 2012 ACC Tournament and finished as a Regional runner-up to the site host in each of his two seasons on the coaching staff.
The Norco, California, native transferred to Georgia Tech, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 2007, after playing his first two college seasons at Riverside (Calif.) Community College. As a two-year starting outfielder at Georgia Tech, he batted .345 with 22 doubles, 14 home runs and 82 RBI in 90 career starts. In 2006, he helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a 50-win season. Following his collegiate career, Crancer was selected in the 12th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Baltimore Orioles.
Crancer and his wife Ashlee have two sons, Blake and Jaxson.
