For the second time in less than a month, the University of Georgia loses a coach who won a national championship. Steve Webber, the winningest baseball coach UGA history, died over the weekend at his home in Atlanta, losing a battle with cancer at the age of 74. Webber led the Bulldogs to the 1990 national championship with a win at the College World Series in Omaha.
His death comes on the heels of the October 28 passing of longtime Bulldog football coach and University of Georgia athletic director Vince Dooley, who died at the age of 90.
Webber tallied 500 victories between 1981 and 1996 as his teams averaged 32 victories per season over 16 years. A native Iowan and graduate of Southern Illinois University, Webber took a pair of Bulldog teams to Omaha for the College World Series, which marked the first two appearances for the program in school history. His 1987 squad won the SEC regular-season title and earned a spot in the CWS. In 1990, their run to the crown culminated with a 2-1 win over Oklahoma State. It marked the first national championship for the Southeastern Conference in baseball. Webber was named SEC Coach of the Year in 1987 and consensus National Coach of the Year in 1990.
He was inducted into UGA’s Circle of Honor in 2018, which is designed to pay tribute to extraordinary student-athletes and coaches who by their performance and conduct have brought honor to the university and themselves, and who by their actions have contributed to the tradition of the Georgia Bulldogs. At that time, he became just the fifth among all 79 inductees that were not UGA alumni. This group included Dick Copas, men’s golf coach (inducted in 2006); Vince Dooley, head football coach and athletic director (inducted in 2004); Liz Murphey, women’s golf coach and senior women’s administrator (inducted in 2001); and Suzanne Yoculan, women’s gymnastics coach (inducted in 2014).
Webber’s coaching career began in 1974 where he served as pitching coach at Georgia Southern under head coach Ron Polk. In 1976, he was hired to do the same for the University of Florida where he remained until 1981 when he landed the head coaching position at Georgia. In 1997, he moved into professional baseball. He worked with five different organizations including the New York Yankees (1997-2003), San Diego Padres (2004-2012), Houston Astros (2013-14) and Atlanta Braves (2016) before retiring in Atlanta.
Webber is survived by Pam, his wife of 51 years, daughter Ashley Joseph, and grandchildren Bo, Whit and Bess.