HOUSTON – University of Houston head baseball coach Todd Whitting added the first piece of his staff with the hiring of Trip Couch as assistant coach on Thursday.

“I am very excited to welcome Trip and his family back to UH,” Whitting said. “He was previously very instrumental in building this program into a national power and understands the blue print for success at the University of Houston. He is a tireless worker who has a great deal of passion and desire to re-establish this program to an elite level.”

Couch rejoins the Cougar baseball program after a stint as assistant coach in 1995-2000. He and Whitting served as assistant coaches at UH together from 1996-2000. As a member of Whitting’s staff, Couch will serve as Cougar baseball’s recruiting coordinator.

“The energy and excitement surrounding the program have been overwhelming,” Couch said. “To be with Todd in his first head coaching position is very rewarding, and I am ready to help him and the program. It’s good to be back at a place that I have a deep passion for.”

While on staff at Houston, Couch served as the team’s hitting and offensive coach and also performed administrative duties, including travel and scheduling. He also served as both a first-base and third-base coach during his time at UH. Couch’s teams still rank among the single-season leaders at the plate and the 2000 squad set a school record with 48 wins.

Under Couch’s guidance, the 1997 Cougar baseball team set school records in batting average (.327), runs scored (508) and hits (769), while the 2000 squad still holds the record with 157 doubles. The 2000 team saw 12 players drafted in the Major League Baseball draft, the most that season by any school in the nation.

As a member of the staff, Couch’s teams qualified for three NCAA Regionals, an NCAA Super Regional and won two Conference USA regular-season titles and two C-USA Tournament championships.

Following his time at Houston, Couch served as an assistant at Texas in 2001, coordinating team travel, NCAA practice logs, and team scheduling, while performing duties as the first-base coach before joining the Arizona Diamondbacks as a scout in 2002. He scouted in the state of Texas and Louisiana and oversaw all try-out camps in the territory.

Before joining the UH staff in 1995, Couch served as the marketing and promotions coordinator for the Cougar baseball and football programs in 1994. He was also assistant coach at Louisiana-Lafayette from 1991-92 and served as a student assistant and bullpen catcher for the Cougars from 1987-1990.

Couch was a member of the Team USA coaching staff in 1999. He also served as coach at the Area Code Games as well as serving on the staff of the Pony Team at the Tournament of Stars where the 18U USA National Team is selected.

Couch is married to the former Tiffany Williams. The couple has two daughters, Chandler Gray and Kendall Blair, and the family lives in Sugar Land.

TRIP COUCH AT A GLANCE

Name: Tripp Couch

Hometown: Charlotte, N.C.

Birthdate: Feb. 19, 1967

EDUCATION

• Louisiana-Lafayette • bachelor’s degree in restaurant administration • 1991

• Charlotte Catholic High School • 1984

FAMILY

Wife: Tiffany

Children: Daughters Chandler Gray and Kendall Blair

COACHING CAREER

2001 • Texas • assistant coach

1995-2000 • Houston • assistant coach

1991-1992 • Louisiana-Lafayette • assistant coach