Biola University Athletics

Jesse Rodgers was named head coach of the Biola baseball team in September 2022. Spring 2027 will mark his fifth season leading the Eagles.

Head Coaching Record

Postseason Record

Coaching Highlights at Biola

• Led Biola to its first PacWest Championships appearance (2025)
• Coached All-American James Whitman (2026 ABCA and D2 Baseball Second Team), the 2026 PacWest Player of the Year and ABCA West Region Position Player of the Year
• Coached 14 all-region selections (7 player-seasons) and 20 All-PacWest selections
• Coached the 2025 PacWest Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Isaiah Leon)
• 12 wins over nationally ranked opponents
• 17 CSC Academic All-District honorees, 120 Academic All-PacWest honors and ABCA Team Academic Excellence Awards in 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25

Through the Years

2026 The Eagles went 26-26 overall and 22-22 in PacWest play. James Whitman earned Second Team All-America honors from the ABCA and D2 Baseball and was named the PacWest Player of the Year and ABCA West Region Position Player of the Year after setting Biola's Division II-era single-season (19) and career (49) home run records. Whitman went on to sign a professional contract with the Athletics organization.

2025 Biola went 26-27 overall and 23-21 in conference play to earn the No. 4 seed and the program's first berth in the PacWest Championships, held in Fresno. Isaiah Leon was named the PacWest Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

2024 Biola went 22-27-1 overall and 12-19 in PacWest play, earning four wins over nationally ranked opponents, including a 9-0 win over No. 4 Point Loma. The Eagles produced six All-PacWest selections, led by First Team picks Taylor Justus and Bobby Brown, and Brown earned D2CCA Second Team All-West Region honors.

2023 In his first season at the helm, Rodgers led the squad to 19 overall wins, including three wins over nationally ranked opponents. The Eagles found success on the field and in the classroom with two all-region selections, six all-conference nods, and 27 student-athletes earning academic honors.

Before Biola

Rodgers moved over from Occidental College where he spent more than a decade on the coaching staff, including time serving as associate head coach. The Tigers benefited from Rodgers' guidance with the second-most wins in the last 10 seasons, a 2016 SCIAC Championship and a plethora of individual accolades for the players coming through the program.

"Coach Rodgers is an incredible addition to our Athletics team,” said Dr. Miller. “His significant baseball expertise, care for whole-person development of baseball student-athletes in their faith and academics, and his commitment to excellence are all areas that he has already been very impressive in. We have a great tradition of success in the program and look forward to having Coach Rodgers lead this next era of Biola Baseball."

Beyond the action on the field, Rodgers organized “Friends of Tiger Baseball” for the Occidental team. The fundraising program helped bring in crucial money, including 25 thousand dollars just in 2014-15.

"I could not be more excited to join the Biola Baseball program, athletics department, and University community,” said Rodgers. “Thank you to Dr. Bethany Miller and the search committee for entrusting me to be a part of the development of the outstanding student-athletes here. I also want to thank the previous coaching staff for leaving the program in a great place to take the next steps on the field. I look forward to adding to the storied history of Biola Baseball on the field and being first-class members of the University and Community."

Playing Career

During his playing career, Rodgers competed for the University of Portland from 2004-07. Through those four years, he earned the starting shortstop role and collected the program record for career assists and finished second in program history for games played.

Rodgers’ leadership was evident even during his playing days, as he was named team captain in his senior campaign. His prowess on the field came through as well with an All-WCC Honorable Mention award.

"Through the hiring process it became clear that Biola is where I want to be,” added Rodgers. “The mission and goals of Biola completely resonate with me. Developing young men to be Christian leaders in the community as well as be competitive on a national level on the field will inspire me every day.”