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Not only has Savage made significant strides on the field, the Bruins fifth-year head coach has found success on the recruiting trail. Savage has quickly turned UCLA into a national baseball power by attracting three top-13 recruiting classes, as ranked by Baseball America, and by playing the most competitive schedules in the nation. Savage's first recruiting class at UCLA, which joined the program for the 2006 season, was ranked the fifth-best group nationally, by Baseball America, and lived up to its billing by leading UCLA to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in program history.
UCLA posted a 33-27 record in 2008, finishing in third place in the Pac-10 Conference with a 13-11 mark. Under Savage's guidance, UCLA has totaled 33 wins in each of the last three years, becoming the first Bruin team to win at least 33 games in three consecutive seasons since 1985-1987. Serving as UCLA's pitching coach, Savage guided the Bruins' staff to its second-lowest ERA (4.45) in the last 16 years - the lowest ERA in that span (3.77) came in 2006, during Savage's second season at the helm. Likewise, UCLA registered a conference-leading 4.29 ERA in Pac-10 action.
The Bruins' 2008 regular-season schedule featured 26 games against teams which advanced to the postseason - including NCAA Regional action, the Bruins played 17 games against Super Regional teams. UCLA played 18 games against teams ranked in Baseball America's weekly top-25 poll. Savage helped lead UCLA to series victories in three of the team's four Pac-10 road series (at Arizona, Washington and California). The Bruins played the third-most difficult schedule in the nation, as ranked by Boyd's World, a national strength-of-schedule ranking service.
In each of the past three seasons, at least one pitcher on UCLA's staff has totaled 100 or more strikeouts. Left-hander David Huff netted 100 strikeouts as a junior in 2006 before being drafted by the Cleveland Indians as a first-round compensation pick (39th overall selection). In 2007, Tyson Brummett fanned 138 batters as a senior before the Philadelphia Phillies drafted the right-hander in the seventh round. Last spring, left-hander Tim Murphy led all Pac-10 pitchers with 111 strikeouts and compiled a 3.34 ERA, the third-lowest in the conference, before being drafted by the Texas Rangers in the third round as the 89th overall selection.
In 2007, Savage helped UCLA overcome an 8-14 start and record a 33-28 overall record, a 14-10 Pac-10 mark and a third-place finish in Pac-10 play. UCLA won 19 of 23 games midway through the 2007 season, marking UCLA's most successful stretch since 1997, when UCLA last advanced to the College World Series.
The Bruins' challenging road to the Super Regionals that season included 29 games against 11 teams that earned postseason berths, including 14 contests against teams that advanced to Super Regional competition. The Bruins played their first 18 games versus seven opponents that were ranked in national top-25 polls throughout the spring.
Savage led UCLA to five consecutive Pac-10 series victories, as the Bruins won two of three games against Washington, Arizona and California in addition to road sweeps of Stanford and USC. UCLA faced the second-most difficult schedule in the nation and the No. 1 most challenging non-conference slate, according to Boyd's World.
Savage's tutelage proved instrumental in the development of Brummett, an All-Pac-10 selection, and the emergence of left-handers Gavin Brooks and Murphy. Under Savage's guidance, Brummett became just the eighth pitcher in school history to have pitched seven or more complete games in one season. Brooks finished the season having tossed three consecutive complete games, compiling more single-season strikeouts and innings pitched than any freshman in program history.
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Savage engineered a quick turnaround in 2006, leading the Bruins to a 33-25 overall record and a berth in the NCAA Malibu Regional. UCLA finished third in the Pac-10 that season with a 13-10 conference record. The Bruins faced the toughest schedule in the nation, as rated by Boyd's World, and played 28 regular-season games against 10 teams that were selected to play in the NCAA Tournament.
That season marked the first year in which UCLA won each of its home Pac-10 series, taking two of three games from conferences foes Washington State, Arizona State, USC and Stanford. The Bruins turned around a 5-9 start, sweeping N.C. State on the road before returning home to take two of three games against Mississippi and sweeping San Diego State.
In just his second year at UCLA, Savage guided the Bruins' pitching staff to a 3.77 team ERA, the lowest mark by any UCLA ballclub since 1980 (3.55). With the addition of Huff and Brummett to the weekend rotation, UCLA's staff recorded six complete games, tied with Stanford for the most in the conference. UCLA pitchers limited its opponents to a .257 batting average in 58 games. Three players earned All-Pac-10 Team honors and three Bruins received honorable mention All-Pac-10 accolades. Savage's first recruiting class at UCLA (ranked No. 5 by Baseball America) made an immediate impact on the program, fueling the Bruins back to the postseason.
Less than one week after the season ended, Savage's squad tied a program record as 12 Bruins were selected in the 2006 MLB Draft. In Savage's first three seasons with the UCLA baseball program, 19 players signed professional contracts. In 2007, three UCLA pitchers were selected in the MLB Draft, as right-handers Brant Rustich, Tyson Brummett and Kevin Brophy were chosen in the second, seventh and 21st rounds, respectively.
Much of the college baseball world noticed UCLA's success in 2006 and aimed their praise toward Savage. Following the 2006 campaign, Savage was named a finalist for the National Coach of the Year award by CollegeBaseballInsider.com, marking the second such time he has been labeled a finalist.
In July 2006, Baseball America hailed Savage as one of "10 People to Watch in the Future." The magazine listed the Bruins' head coach with other distinguished baseball personnel such as New York Mets general manger Omar Minaya, Mets all-star third baseman David Wright and Los Angeles Dodgers assistant general manager Kim Ng. Baseball America lauded Savage for his winning ways: "UCLA has always been viewed as a sleeping giant on the West Coast, and it looks like Savage has the giant stirring."
Prior to taking over the UCLA baseball program in 2005, Savage's coaching career made stops at Nevada, USC and UC Irvine, where he led the Anteaters to the program's first-ever NCAA Division I Tournament appearance in 2004. His ability to soundly recruit first-class student-athletes and to develop them into highly recognized Division I baseball players led UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero to hire Savage on July 1, 2004, to replace the retired Gary Adams.
Coincidentally, Guerrero also hired Savage at UC Irvine three years prior and asked him to re-launch a dormant Anteater baseball program. Savage spent his first season recruiting players and building the foundation for his program that began play in 2002. In their first season, the Anteaters compiled a 33-26 record, and the pitching staff set a school record with 487 strikeouts. Despite injuries to key players the following season, UC Irvine recorded 417 strikeouts and a 3.61 ERA (third in the Big West Conference).
In 2004, Savage led UC Irvine to its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division I baseball tournament. UC Irvine competed at the Notre Dame Regional and finished the year with a 34-23-1 mark. Savage's pitching staff recorded 483 strikeouts, four shy of the school record, and compiled a 3.69 ERA (second in the Big West). The UC Irvine offense hit at a .288 clip, averaging 5.7 runs per game.
That season, Savage coached a myriad of talented athletes, including the Big West Conference Freshman Pitcher of the Year, the Collegiate Baseball "Louisville Slugger" Freshman of the Year and the only freshman in the nation to earn All-America first-team accolades from USA Today/Sports Weekly. Savage also led UC Irvine to its highest national ranking in school history - a No. 7 spot from Collegiate Baseball in April 2004.
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Following Savage's historic 2004 campaign, he was tabbed a finalist for National Coach of the Year honors by CollegeBaseballInsider.com. Three of his players were selected in the 2004 MLB Draft, and a total of 12 athletes signed professional contracts under his tutelage at UC Irvine. As a head coach, Savage compiled a perfect 4-0 mark against UCLA. His UC Irvine squads defeated the Bruins twice in 2002 and twice more in 2004.
Prior to taking over the UC Irvine program, Savage served as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Southern California (USC) from 1996 to 2000. At USC, he produced numerous successful athletes, including consecutive Pac-10 Pitchers of the Year Seth Etherton, Rik Currier and eventual American League Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito. Ultimately, Savage helped guide Etherton to the 1998 Sporting News National Player of the Year award and was instrumental in his nomination as a Golden Spikes Award finalist. Also under his mentorship was current San Diego Padres right-hander Mark Prior.
As recruiting coordinator, Savage helped facilitate the Trojans' top-ranked recruiting class (Collegiate Baseball) during the 1999-2000 season and served as an assistant to Mike Gillespie for the USA Baseball National Team of collegiate all-stars in the summer of 2000. That summer, the U.S. National Team tallied a 27-3-1 record and won the gold medal at the Haarlem Baseball Week Tournament in the Netherlands.
Two years prior, Savage earned Collegiate Baseball's Assistant Coach of the Year honors in 1998 after his coaching talents helped USC capture the 1998 College World Series Championship. He also helped guide USC to an NCAA Regional title in 1999 and the NCAA Super Regional at Georgia Tech in 2000.
Savage coached at the University of Nevada from 1992 to 1996, helping the Wolf Pack compile a 177-82 record in five seasons. Throughout his tenure at Nevada, the baseball program won the 1994 Big West Conference title and strung together its first back-to-back 35-win seasons in school history. During Savage's years at Nevada, 24 Wolf Pack players signed professional contracts.
Savage began his coaching career as the pitching coach for Reno (NV) High School during the 1988-1989 school year.
Savage was a sixth-round draft choice of the New York Yankees in 1983, following his senior season at Reno High, but chose to attend Santa Clara University, where he pitched for three seasons. In 1986, the Cincinnati Reds selected Savage in the 16th round. Savage played two seasons in the Reds' organization before moving on to help the independent league Salt Lake City Trappers set a professional baseball record with 29 consecutive victories in 1987.
Following his professional career, Savage earned his bachelor's degree in secondary education, with an emphasis in physical education and history, from Nevada in 1991.
Savage, 43, and his wife, Lisa, have four children: Julia (12), Jack (10), Ryan (8) and Gabrielle (6).
| John Savage's Year-by-Year Head Coaching Record | ||||||
| Year | School | Record | Pct. | Conf. Record | Conf. Finish | Postseason |
| 2002 | UC Irvine | 33-26 | .559 | 14-10 | t-4th (Big West) | none |
| 2003 | UC Irvine | 21-35 | .375 | 8-13 | t-5th (Big West) | none |
| 2004 | UC Irvine | 34-23-1 | .595 | 10-11 | t-4th (Big West) | Midwest Regional |
| 2005 | UCLA | 15-41 | .260 | 4-20 | 8th (Pac-10) | none |
| 2006 | UCLA | 33-25 | .560 | 13-10 | 3rd (Pac-10) | Malibu Regional |
| 2007 | UCLA | 33-28 | .540 | 14-10 | 3rd (Pac-10) | Fullerton Super Regional |
| 2008 | UCLA | 33-27 | .547 | 13-11 | 3rd (Pac-10) | Fullerton Regional |
| 7 Years | Overall | 202-205-1 | .496 | 76-85 | .472 | 4 Regionals, 1 Super Reg. |
| 3 Years | at UC Irvine | 88-84-1 | .509 | 32-34 | .484 | 1 Regional |
| 4 Years | at UCLA | 114-121 | .485 | 44-51 | .463 | 3 Regionals, 1 Super Reg. |