Coach James enters his 8th year on staff at MCA, his second as Athletic Director, and 5th as Varsity Baseball Head Coach. During his time at MCA, he has held multiple positions including 8th Grade Bible Teacher, Middle School Athletic Coordinator, and Middle School Athletic Director.
On the diamond, Coach James’ teams have made the playoffs the last 4 years, including three trips to the TAPPS State Tournament. Most recently, Coach James’ squad won the 2025 TAPPS Division III Baseball State Championship when they defeated Northland Christian 9-8 for the first state title in program history. The 2025 team also set a new program record for wins in a season with 28, including a perfect 8-0 district record for just the 3rd district championship in program history, the second under James. The Mustangs won 2 other tournaments in 2025–the FBA Open and the Live Oak Falcon Park Classic with a roster that included 4 future college baseball players: Marc Jensen (Mountain View College), Teague Spivey (North Greenville University), John Clark (Odessa College), and Micah Gagnon (The University of Toronto). In addition to the on-the-field accolades, the 2025 Mustangs also received their 4th consecutive American Baseball Coaches Association Team Academic Excellence Award.
In 2024, the Baseball team was a TAPPS Division III State Semi-Finalist, and had a roster that included 2 future college baseball players in Connor Jarzombek (Oklahoma Baptist) and Jax Marshall (University of Houston). In addition to the state tournament appearance, the 2023 team earned an American Baseball Coaches Association Team Academic Excellence Award, and accumulated the third most wins in program history.
In 2023, the Mustangs won their 2nd ever district championship and made a deep playoff run all the way to the state championship game, finishing the season as the TAPPS DIII State Runner-Up. Additionally, this team received multiple on the field honors at both the district and state levels, and the MCA Coaching Staff was named the District Coaching Staff of the Year. The 203 club earned an American Baseball Coaches Association Team Academic Excellence Award, and finished tied for 3rd in program history for wins.
In 2022, The MCA Baseball team was led by a future NCAA DIII Pitcher in Greg Jessup (Cairn University), and the team finished the season as TAPPS DII Area Finalists in James’ first campaign as head coach. The team earned an American Baseball Coaches Association Team Academic Excellence Award. Also in 2022, Noah Field underwent some dugout renovations to expand the dugout area.
Prior to being named the head coach, James served as the top assistant coach and pitching coach on the 2021 team that made it to the TAPPS DII State Semi-Finals. James joined the MCA Coaching staff for the 2019 season and has served in several coaching positions during this time, including Assistant Varsity Football, Head Middle School Girls Basketball, Assistant and Head Middle School Football.
Before landing at MCA, Coach James has also coached at Ovilla Christian, Calvary Christian in Fort Worth (now Mercy Culture Prep), Bland High School, Harvest Christian, and SAGU (now Nelson University). James also has experience coaching with Athletes in Action in the New York Collegiate Baseball League, including setting a then-program record for wins in 2014.
Coach James is married to Juliana, and they have 3 children: Annie (3rd Grade), Sawyer (1st Grade), and Hazel (4 years). The James family are members of First McKinney. James’ education includes a BS in Sports Management from SAGU (now Nelson University) and a MS in Sports Coaching Education from the University of Southern Mississippi.
