SPRINGFIELD – Newly-named Missouri State head baseball coach Joey Hawkins announced his three assistants Tuesday along with a pair of support staff positions.
Geoff Jimenez – Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
Geoff Jimenez remains on staff as an assistant coach in his second stint with the Missouri State program. He will serve as recruiting coordinator while continuing as the team’s outfield and baserunning coach.
Jimenez rejoined the Bears in January 2023 as Director of Player Development and moved into an assistant role in the summer of that same year. Since returning to MSU, the Bears’ outfielders have received plenty of hardware, including Spencer Nivens bringing home 2023 Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year honors, Zack Stewart twice earning second-team all-conference honors and Caden Bogenpohl setting the MSU freshman record for homers in 2024.
Jimenez served as a graduate assistant for the Bears during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, helping MoState to a pair of Missouri Valley Conference regular season titles, an MVC Tournament championship, and two NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Super Regional in 2017.
After earning his Master’s in sports management from MSU, Jimenez worked for a year as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Maryville University before transitioning to professional ball.
He began his pro coaching career in the Philadelphia Phillies organization for nearly a year before working a pair of Seattle Mariners affiliates, spending the 2021 season as the bench and outfield coach for the Low A Modesto Nuts, and the 2022 campaign as assistant hitting coach at Double A Arkansas, where he worked with the Travelers’ outfielders and coached third base.
Originally from Pembroke Pines, Fla., Jimenez played collegiately at Florida Atlantic (2011-13) before finishing his career at Nova Southeastern University, where he graduated in May 2014 with an exercise and sport science degree. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Georgia Southwestern State for the 2015-16 academic year.
Deck McGuire – Assistant Coach/Pitching Coach
McGuire will manage the Missouri State pitching staff and takes over for Nick Petree, who stepped away following the 2024 season.
McGuire brings a strong pedigree to the Bears from Georgia Tech, where he played from 2008-10 and returned in 2024 to work as an undergraduate assistant coach for Danny Hall, the winningest active Division I head coach and 11th on the all-time list, while completing his degree in general management. He was inducted in the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2020.
Originally from Richmond, Va., McGuire was the 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year and a two-time first-team all-ACC selection for the Yellowjackets, posting a career 28-7 record and 3.28 ERA over 291 innings. McGuire started against Missouri State in the 2010 season opener in Atlanta, throwing seven shutout innings with 10 strikeouts and no walks.
The 2009 Golden Spikes Award semifinalist and national pitcher of the year finalist was the No. 11 overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft by Toronto. He pitched in 48 Major League games with Cincinnati, Toronto and the Los Angeles Angels in 2017 and 2018, and played in the Korean Baseball Organization in 2019, where he threw the 14th no-hitter in league history as a member of the Samsung Lions. McGuire retired from professional baseball in 2022.
McGuire and his wife Kayla have two children, son Jaxson and daughter Parker.
Dustin Williams – Assistant Coach
Williams has been a member of the Missouri State staff since July 2022 and makes the transition to full-time assistant, where he will continue to work with the Bears’ hitters and catchers. Williams originally came on board as a volunteer assistant and made the move to Director of Player Development a year later.
Williams served as first base coach for the Bears during the 2023 season and helped mentor a lineup that hit 89 home runs on the season, the fifth-highest total in school history. The 2024 campaign was even better for the MSU offense, with the Bears launching 114 home runs to rank second in school and fourth in Missouri Valley Conference history.
Prior to Missouri State, Williams spent three seasons at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, two as a graduate assistant while earning his Master’s in kinesiology, and the 2022 campaign as a volunteer assistant for the Islanders, working primarily with infielders and catchers.
Williams played collegiately at Oklahoma State from 2014-17, where he was a two-time all-Big 12 selection at first base and led the league with 14 home runs as a junior in 2016. He helped the Cowboys to the College World Series that season and NCAA Regional berths all four years in Stillwater and graduated from OSU’s College of Business in 2017.
Additional Support Staff
Aaron Sawchak, Director of Operations
Tanner Petersen, Director of Analytics
Hires are subject to formal approval by the Missouri State Board of Governors at its next scheduled meeting.
