Scott Benedict - Wellington High, Baseball

Scott Benedict learned more than 20 years ago there is no secret formula to being successful in baseball.

As the head coach at Wellington High since the school opened its doors in 1988, Benedict has continually guided the Wolverines to the upper echelon of Florida high school baseball, including a 30-2 record and Final Four playoff appearance this year. But Benedict says he learned early on in his career that teaching kids to become good baseball players comes down to persistence, which has been the key to his success.

"I learned from Dusty Rhodes (at the University of North Florida) that there's no secret formula," says Benedict. "You just have to work harder and be smarter than the other guy."

	As the head coach at Wellington High since the school opened its doors in 1988, Benedict has continually guided the Wolverines to the upper echelon of Florida high school baseball.

Benedict, who played three seasons in the New York Yankees' organization, says he is able to teach the game to his players because of what he learned from his coaches. Aside from Rhodes, Benedict played for former Chicago White Sox pitcher Bob Shaw on an American Legion team as a teenager.

"I learned a lot of fundamentals from Bob," says Benedict, 41. "I owe a lot to him in learning the fundamentals of the game."

Benedict has had plenty of on-the-job training, as well. Aside from having coached American Legion baseball for 11 years and serving as an assistant at Florida Atlantic University for a few years, Benedict has 15 years of coaching experience at the high school level. That decade-and-a-half has helped teach him that high school baseball isn't always about winning and losing.

"I like to have an impact on kids' lives," says Benedict. "I think during their teenage years, they get exposed to a lot of things. I spend a lot of time with them, more than teachers and guidance counselors, and I try to have them keep their priorities straight."

And although Wellington has become known for drawing in some of the best baseball players Florida has to offer, Benedict says he's equally proud of his team's GPA and the players' success outside of baseball.

"They know when they play here that their first responsibility is to do the job in the classroom," says Benedict, whose team had a 3.0 average GPA this year. "They've got to realize they're students first and athletes second. I'm just as proud of the guys who are now raising families and have good jobs. I like to say that not everybody can be a major league player, but they can all be major league people."