Editor’s be aware: This story was initially posted on Could 16, 2025, earlier than Texas Tech hosted the Lubbock Regional. With Texas Tech shifting on within the 2025 WCWS, we’ve got up to date it.
LUBBOCK, Texas — Final July, pitcher NiJaree Canady shook school sports activities when she introduced her switch to Texas Tech and landed the richest softball NIL deal ever.
The reigning USA Softball Nationwide Participant of the 12 months bolted from the hallowed halls of Stanford, the place she had turn into a celebrity after piloting the Cardinal to 2 straight Ladies’s Faculty World Sequence appearances, ending within the remaining 4 groups each instances. Her new dwelling could be on the arid plains of West Texas at a college that had by no means received a convention title and had received simply 49% of its video games — and 31% of its league video games because the creation of the Huge 12.
The switch was met with awe: The Matador Membership, Texas Tech’s NIL collective, made a historic play for Canady, providing a one-year, $1,050,024 contract (one million for Canady, $50k for residing bills, $24 for her jersey quantity).
Simply greater than a month after Pink Raiders coach Gerry Glasco — who was employed from Louisiana on June 20, three days after Canady had entered the portal and began lining up visits — arrived in Lubbock, he landed probably the most helpful participant within the nation. He did it by pulling out all of the stops, together with recruiting calls from quarterback Patrick Mahomes to Canady, a Kansan who’s a loyal Kansas Metropolis Chiefs fan.
Glasco, who did not have a lot in the best way of NIL in Lafayette, had all of a sudden walked into what he believed was the very best softball state of affairs in America. Two of the Matador Membership’s greatest boosters — Tracy Sellers, a former Tech softball participant, and her husband, John, an oil and fuel government and former Pink Raiders soccer participant below Mike Leach — had been supporting softball for years. They donated $11 million to the athletic division in 2022, with $1 million designated for softball stadium upgrades.
Glasco stated he was instructed Canady’s agent was initially searching for $400,000, which he thought was low for her to go away Stanford, the place she was already a budding legend.
“My message was: We’re speaking about Bo Jackson. We’re speaking about Herschel Walker,” Glasco instructed the Sellers. “We’re speaking a few once-in-a-generation participant that is already made a reputation throughout America. She’s a folks hero in our sport and he or she’s a sophomore.”
Tracy thought it was value making an announcement at Texas Tech, a spot the place Sheryl Swoopes turned a celebrity and the place the freeway outdoors Rocky Johnson Subject is called for former Pink Raiders ladies’s basketball coach Marsha Sharp. After assembly with the star pitcher, Sellers determined if anybody was worthy of such an emphatic assertion about investing in ladies’s sports activities, it was Canady.
“She is an excellent human being,” Sellers stated. “We take a look at it as they deserve it simply as a lot [as male athletes]. She labored so arduous to be the No. 1 pitcher within the nation. … I left that assembly and thought, that is who I’d like to put a whole lot of effort into due to who she is.”
Canady knew the highlight would include the information, however she hopes it opens the door for individuals who comply with her to reap the advantages.
“There are a whole lot of male athletes who get that and it isn’t a headline anymore,” Canady stated. “I hope that occurs for girls’s sports activities, too. I really feel like it may be a strain when you let or not it’s, however actually, I believe it is only a privilege. I hope somebody tomorrow is available in and builds it much more.”
Wanting again on the Sellers’ donation for the softball amenities, the identical dimension funding in Canady had a larger transformative influence.
This 12 months, the Pink Raiders received their first Huge 12 regular-season and convention titles whereas Canady leads the nation with a 0.86 ERA. She went 26-5 throughout the common season, racking up the second-most wins in a season in class historical past. She was named the Huge 12 Pitcher of the 12 months. And he or she led the Pink Raiders to their first win within the Ladies’s Faculty World Sequence on Thursday, defeating Ole Miss 1-0.
Canady and No. 12-seed Texas Tech’s WCWS journey continues Saturday in opposition to No. 9-seed UCLA (7 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+).
“She positively put Texas Tech softball on the map,” Tracy stated.
CANADY WANTS TO make one factor clear: There’s extra to the story than only a large deposit.
“I really feel like folks thought I heard the quantity and simply got here to Texas Tech, which wasn’t the case in any respect,” stated Canady, who stated she thought of Tech’s provide for greater than a month earlier than she dedicated. “If I did not really feel like Coach Glasco was a tremendous coach and may lead this program to be the place we thought it could possibly be, I would not have come.”
Glasco, 66, is a wildly profitable late bloomer within the softball world who received 5 convention titles with six journeys to the NCAA regionals in six seasons at Louisiana. He wasn’t employed till Canady had already entered the portal, so he needed to make up floor rapidly as a result of he wasn’t precisely within the sweepstakes in Lafayette. However he had a secret weapon: Glasco was associates with Jim Huecker, a former journey ball coach and Canady’s longtime coach. And Glasco knew what Huecker knew: Canady missed hitting as a lot as she cherished pitching.
Canady grew up in Topeka, Kansas, as a multisport star, together with enjoying basketball and sort out soccer in opposition to boys. On her ladies’ basketball crew in highschool, Canady averaged 20.6 factors and 12.3 rebounds throughout her junior 12 months, main Topeka Excessive to the Kansas 6A state finals whereas additionally being the two-time Kansas Softball Gatorade Participant of the 12 months and main the crew to its first two state titles. She dominated within the circle, clearly, but in addition hit .478 with 13 homers as a junior and .530 with 42 RBIs as a senior. After hitting simply 35 instances in two seasons at Stanford, Canady wished to get again to being an all-around athlete.
And Glasco, who directed record-setting offenses as an assistant at Georgia and Texas A&M, stunned Canady by making hitting a centerpiece of his presentation, which comprised a stack of handwritten stat sheets and charts.
“That is my lineup,” Glasco stated, holding up the identical poster he used to pitch Canady. “If you happen to look, I’ve acquired ’em all and I am promising her what number of runs I’ll rating. The coaches wished to place it in Excel, make it good, however I stated, ‘No, no, no. I would like it as a result of NiJa has to belief me. If it is in my handwriting, that is higher than on a pc as a result of it must be private.’ I consider that was vital.”
On most visits, Canady spent the majority of her time with pitching coaches. However in Lubbock, Canady was so that she spent extra time on her go to assembly with Glasco than she did with Tara Archibald, Glasco’s daughter who serves as affiliate head coach and pitching coach.
“I believe I talked to Coach Tara perhaps 20 to half-hour about pitching after which the remainder of the time was simply Coach Glasco, speaking about hitting,” Canady stated. “Afterward, I had to return and speak to Coach Tara somewhat extra simply because Coach Glasco and I spent a lot time simply speaking about hitting, going by means of completely different swings, watching movies. And that was positively completely different simply because different faculties had been clearly extra targeted on my pitching.”
When Archibald left her head teaching job at Japanese Illinois, the place she went 40-17 final season, to hitch her father’s workers July 3, she could not have imagined touchdown Canady. However first, she needed to wait on her dad, who can spin just a few yarns.
Glasco coached his three daughters: Tara, Erin and the late Geri Ann, a former Gatorade Nationwide Participant of the 12 months who died in a 2019 automobile accident when she was a volunteer coach for him at Louisiana.
“That is why I believe I might determine along with her,” Glasco stated. “All three of my daughters pitched and performed and hit. And once you’re an athlete, the one factor you do not need to be is a pitcher solely. In our sport, the pitcher is so vital, so we restrict them. And I believe that is what she felt like in her school profession. … She desires the chance.”
Regardless of coping with a soft-tissue damage in March and being restricted, Canady has 95 at-bats this 12 months, batting .305 with 11 homers and 5 doubles. She’s second on the crew with a .451 on-base proportion. Nonetheless, she takes violent cuts, trying to ship the ball into orbit any probability she will get.
“I am positively making an attempt to hit the ball out,” Canady stated. “And that is Coach Glasco’s motto, too. He loves the lengthy ball.”
CANADY SAID THERE wasn’t a lot tradition shock going from Palo Alto to Lubbock. She is from Topeka, in any case.
“Lubbock jogs my memory extra of dwelling,” she stated.
The main distinction, she stated, has been the environment in Lubbock. Positioned 5 hours from Dallas and 6 from Austin, it is its personal outpost in West Texas. The Pink Raiders are a loyal bunch.
“I believe that was the largest shock to me, nearly how a lot sports activities matter right here in Texas,” she stated. “I bear in mind my first soccer sport right here and simply seeing how many individuals had been right here, that was positively completely different.”
That legendary arm has proved helpful at Tech soccer video games, the place she has admitted to sneaking in tortillas and winging them down towards the sphere, a practice in Lubbock.
“There’s a complete science behind getting it far,” she stated. “You need to put a gap within the heart. There is a sure technique to throw it.”
And it did not harm that one other Pink Raider with a legendary arm has turn into an enormous fan and made his personal recruiting pitch. Canady, an enormous Chiefs fan, was shocked when Mahomes interrupted his trip in Italy to name her on her go to.
“I am not going to say any names, however one other program had an important particular person name me and there was no caller ID, so I could not name him again or something,” Canady stated. “However Patrick Mahomes, I’ve his quantity, I can attain out to him. So, I believe that is cool. Final July, we had been consuming lunch and had a gorgeous view of the entire soccer stadium. Somebody instructed me, simply ship an image to Patrick to see if he responds. He is getting ready for the season after which I believe inside 10 minutes he acquired again to me.”
Canady has that form of star energy, and he or she’ll undoubtedly draw extra gamers who need to play alongside her subsequent 12 months, with extra time for Glasco to work as a substitute of the quick-assembly mission he put collectively final season. Glasco thinks this 12 months’s Pink Raiders crew can take anybody to the wire due to Canady, however he’s assured he can contend for a nationwide championship subsequent 12 months, if not this 12 months.
“I’ve by no means coached anyone near her,” he stated. “I’ve by no means coached this type of pitcher in school. It has an enormous impact. It makes up for lots of unhealthy teaching errors, I am going to inform you that.”
The partnership impacted all events concerned. She says it was arduous to go away Stanford, her teammates and coaches, and sure, that Stanford diploma. However Canady’s dream is to educate youngsters and open her personal facility — or amenities — and her household feels the cash will assist her get there rapidly.
“She desires to show little ladies to hit,” Glasco stated. “She loves little youngsters. You possibly can see it when she indicators autographs.”
And it would not harm to have the Sellers in her nook.
“Why would you not need folks you like to succeed? And so identical with NiJa. I’d go into enterprise any day along with her,” Tracy stated. “She’s a star in Lubbock, Texas. It is not nearly cash. I actually hope that story will get out about her.”
