Where Are They Now: Bill Edwards, Softball

A former ice hockey coach at Iona College, Bill Edwards became the seventh head coach of Hofstra softball in 1990 after coaching at Commack High School for nine years, leading the team to a 118-61 record with a Suffolk County and Long Island championship in 1988. Upon his arrival at Hofstra until his retirement in 2014, Edwards coached the Pride to 15 NCAA Tournament appearances while posting a 928-419-3 record, making him the winningest coach of any program in the history of Hofstra athletics.

With Edwards in the dugout, Hofstra won 18 postseason conference championships, including 10 Colonial Athletic Association titles. He was named the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Regional Coach of the Year 12 times at Hofstra, was named the CAA Coach of the Year six consecutive seasons from 2008-2013, and was named America East Conference Coach of the Year in 1995 and 1999. In addition, five Hofstra players were named NFCA All-Americans, the first All-Americans in Hofstra softball history, and five received CoSIDA Academic All-America honors.

Twice did Hofstra get to within one win of making the Women’s College World Series under Edwards - in 2004 and in 2012. In 2013, Edwards led the Pride to a school-record 46-win season and a spot in the regional title game.

Edwards, who was also an accomplished men’s ice hockey coach at Iona College from 1968-1979, was enshrined in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2009, and was inducted into the Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame in 2014. Edwards is married and has two daughters and four grandchildren.

How did you end up becoming the coach of Hofstra softball?

I think deep down, I always wanted to be a college coach. I was a college coach earlier in my career, coaching for 12 years at Iona College, so that was still on my back-burner, knowing how much I enjoyed coaching that age group. When I had retired from there and moved into the high school level, I was still burning to coach back at the college level. When the opportunity at Hofstra opened up for me, I ran into it head-first. The timing was right for me, and I had wanted to coach at the college level and take a program that had some potential to it. I took this as an opportunity to see what I was made of, and whether or not I could apply some of my philosophies and some of my standards at the next level. 

I enjoyed coaching the high school kids; in fact, I’m still in touch with a lot of the kids I’ve coached over the years. The timing was right, and more importantly the institution was right; Hofstra is a local school, so I was able to keep my teaching position and do both. It really was a tremendous opportunity and I’m grateful that I took it.

Do you have a favorite memory from your time at Hofstra?

It was such a great run with great kids and with unbelievable support from the University. For me to single out one player, one team, or one game is difficult because there were so many big-pressure games that became meaningful experiences for me. I just enjoyed every minute of my time there. Working with so many incredible athletes, and now to see them grow into the women that they are now makes me feel so proud for them.

You were an incredibly successful ice hockey coach at Iona, eventually being selected to their Hall of Fame. What made you want to get into coaching softball?

While I was coaching ice hockey up at Iona, I was playing in a lot of slowpitch softball leagues. While I was playing that, the fastpitch game was just starting to develop. It was starting to get some exposure from the collegiate level, and through the Amateur Softball Association (now Team USA Softball). When I moved to Commack and started working at the high school, I had coached baseball. I wanted to coach baseball at the high school, but they had a legendary coach already there. The softball position was available, so I said ‘I’ll take it, I’ll do it.’

Also, I had two daughters that were very interested in playing softball. So going from hockey to playing the sport myself, to coaching the sport in high school, and with having two daughters that played, the transition was very smooth and easy.

What makes a Hofstra softball player? What kind of player did you look to recruit while at Hofstra?

Hofstra softball players have a blue-collar work ethic, a tremendous amount of love for the sport, a high standard for oneself so they can establish self-discipline and personal accountability, the desire to become better, and to be a fierce competitor. Those were the kinds of players we were looking for, and there was nothing more satisfying to me than having a high school coach come up to me and tell me that they have a Hofstra player.

We were a bunch of tough kids from the Northeast that wanted to prove something to the rest of the country, because a lot of the traditional softball powers come from the South or out West. So we wanted that attitude and standard of taking a bunch of kids from the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions and we’re going to go out there and prove that we can compete with the rest of the country.

You were inducted into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2009 while you were still actively coaching. What did it feel like to achieve that?

It was a tremendous honor knowing that all your hard work is being recognized by the people that you care so much about and that you’ve learned from. It was just a highlight that you can’t put into words but you have so many thank yous to give out not only to the players, but also to the people who were so influential in getting you where you are to even be considered for an honor such as that. And then, on the evening of the induction ceremony, having so many players come back probably made that evening even more special.

I had put in over 20 years and worked with so many incredible people. When you have tried to make such an impact on a sport and you’ve tried to give so much back to that sport, it was such an honor to receive while I was still coaching and still active in the sport.

A year following your retirement from Hofstra, the softball stadium was named after you. What was it like to see the stadium you coached in for so long be named after you?

I was very humbled and honored that day, and I still feel that way. Every time I drive by the stadium and see my name on the wall, I want to add the names of every player, coach, and administrator that poured their heart and soul into our program's success. Hofstra softball became a family, and I continue to remark on how lucky and fortunate I am to be a small part of that family and I'm reminded of it every time I drive by our stadium.

What does it mean to you to be a part of the Hofstra family?

It means everything. When I think back to the two Hofstra presidents that I coached under, all the coaches that I had the ability to be around, we felt like we were a family. Then having all the players that you’ve recruited across all these years, to have all the championships that we won, to be there for all the highs and lows of coaching… to be able to experience all those things with your players and fellow coaches, to have the support of the administration and the rest of the University, all of that over all those years forms a belief that we’re all in this together. From top to bottom, that’s the Hofstra family, and it’s all tied together with athletics. 

I have a grandson who is in the music department at Hofstra and the things he’s telling me from his music professor are the same things I would tell my players. So seeing those similarities in the Hofstra family from the music department to athletics, it’s very special. Everybody feels that closeness of the community and everybody can gain something from it. We can help each other through the difficult times like we are now, to the great times where you can support victories and the success of student-athletes and regular students. It’s such an honor to be considered part of this family.

What is some advice you would have for a current Hofstra student-athlete?

Academics is the most important thing you can adhere to; it shows that you’re not just dedicated to improving yourself on the field, but also outside of it. Improving yourself as a person is also very important; coaches are looking for someone who can fit their program personally along with from a talent perspective. Being coachable, being a good teammate, and being truly in love with your sport are some of the best things you can ask from a student-athlete.