Clay Collison enters his sixth season on the coaching staff at Augustana after returning to the Vikings in 2019. He was promoted to full-time in February of 2020.
In 2024, the pitching staff reached heights that it had never reached before. They threw more shutouts (12) than any team in the NCAA. They ranked first in DII in strikeouts per nine innings (11.6) and strikeout/walk ratio (3.42) Their 1.25 WHIP ranked fourth in the country, 7.86 hits allowed per nine innings was sixth, and their 4.25 team ERA was 17th. They struck out over 500 hitters for the third consecutive season and fifth time all-time while resetting the single-season records for K/9 and pickoffs (15). Ashton Michek was named NSIC Pitcher of the Year while Caleb Saari was named First Team All-NSIC and J.D. Hennen was named to the second team.
Collison's pitching staff picked up in 2023 as they left off 2022, ranking in the top 25 in the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio (14th), WHIP (15th), strikeouts per nine innings (17th), and hits allowed per nine innings (21st). The staff struck out over 500 batters for the second consecutive year and fourth time in school history. Adam Diedrich closed the season with 14 saves, tied for the most in the nation, and Seth Miller finished eighth in the country with 11 victories. Both pitchers were recognized nationally, as Diedrich earned a spot on the NCBWA All-America second team and Miller earned ABCA/Rawlings All-America second team honors.
During the 2022 season, the Viking pitching staff was one of the most productive in program history. The Vikings surpassed 500 strikeouts for the third time in Augustana history, reaching 584 and setting a new team record for strikeouts in a season. Tanner Brown and Ryan Jares both reached 100-plus strikeouts in 2022, and Brown became the Augustana career strikeout leader with 301 and the Augustana career pitching win leader with 25. Brown and Jares were also named to all-region teams with Brown earning NCBWA All-American honors and D2CCA All-America honors.
Under Collison's guidance, the pitching staff in 2021 was the most prolific strikeout team in Augustana history. The team achieved 500-plus strikeouts for the second time in school history (in just 49 games) and saw three pitchers earn all-conference honors. Junior lefty Tanner Brown also tossed the second perfect game in school history against Minot State in 2021.
Collison helped guide the 2020 Vikings to a 9-4 record in which the season was cut short due to COVID-19. Collison also helped guide the 2019 squad to a 43-16 record, NSIC regular season championship, NSIC tournament championship and NCAA Central Regional Championship. He works with pitchers on a daily basis and is in charge of creating development plans for all Viking pitchers. Collison also coordinates Augie baseball camps.
Clay was a member of 2018 National Championship team while playing for Augustana. He made 12 appearances for the Vikings on the mound in 2018, including 7 starts. Clay started both the NSIC Championship and Central Region Championship contests. He tossed 36.1 innings and tallied 39 strikeouts on the season and held opponents to a batting average of .225 and posted a 3.96 ERA.
Prior to transferring to Augustana he spent two years at Nebraska-Kearney and made 15 appearances for the Lopers in 2017.
Clay played two seasons at Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge, Iowa for Head Coach Rick Pederson. He was a part of a team that won the ICCAC regular season title in 2015 and had an overall record of 36-21. The Tritons finished the 2014 campaign with a record of 38-19.
A Native of Algona, Iowa. Clay graduated from Augustana in 2018 with a degree in Sport Management and earned his masters in Sports Administration and Leadership in spring of 2020.
