Collazo named head baseball coach at TCNJ

BY ROBERT DEVLIN III

     This past summer, former Wall High School infielder Chris Collazo was named the head coach of the College of New Jersey (TCNJ), landing his first head coaching position after a successful stint as an assistant at the University of Pittsburgh.
     Before his coaching career, Collazo made a name for himself as an infielder at Wall, where his name is still stitched into history as the school’s all-time career hit leader after graduating in 2005. He set new heights for the Crimson Knights’ program and is the first Wall alumnus to hold a head baseball coaching position in the NCAA. 
     “I truly love every part of it and have been fortunate to learn from the esteemed coaches I’ve worked under, and now I get to bring all of those lessons together and shape the program in my own way,” Collazo said.
     That includes Wall baseball coach James Rochford, who was an assistant when Collazo came through, and has not been surprised with Collazo’s success.
     “I knew,” Coach Rochford said. “He always wanted to do something big with baseball. (He) told us more than a few times he’d do something big with baseball. I think he has and the new job is a reflection of that. I’m not at all surprised at how far he’s come.”
     Coach Rochford recounted that Collazo was a two-sport athlete for the Knights, winning a divisional championship in all four of his years playing varsity soccer. 
       “He was just a winner, no other way to put it,” he said.
      After his career with the Knights, Collazo went to Monmouth University, where he also succeeded on the diamond. In his sophomore season, he started a career-high 61 games, batting .318, one of the teams’ best. He finished his time with the Hawks with a .335 batting average, including his senior season when he hit .376.
     With his playing career behind him, Collazo now looks forward to coaching his first game after recent stops as an assistant at Delaware and Pittsburgh. It’s his first return to the Garden State in a coaching role since 2022, when he left his recruiting coordinator and assistant coach role at Monmouth. 
     “There is so much more that goes into being a head coach compared to being an assistant and, while I spent 16 years preparing for this opportunity, nothing can fully get you ready until you are in it,” Collazo said.
     Collazo said he thinks others interested in coaching should be willing to adjust to changes even when thrust into the unknown. 
      “You better have passion and you better be willing to sacrifice, especially if you want to coach at a high level,” he said. “You need to be a great communicator, but also be very understanding and compassionate. Coaching requires a slow heartbeat and a sense of calmness. You need to welcome adversity and stay even no matter what comes your way. Coaching is not about the money, especially at first.
​      “It takes patience and persistence but, if you love the game, the rewards go far beyond a paycheck,” Collazo added. “Every aspect of coaching has to drive you, from helping players become better people and better performers, to pushing for wins every day. Just as important, when you walk through the door at home, you have to be able to leave whatever happened that day outside. Compartmentalizing and separating work from home life is key.”