West Liberty University Athletics

    When Jim Watson came to West Liberty from Springfield, Mass. in 1971 as the school's head athletic trainer and baseball coach, it marked the start of a transformative 40-year career on the hilltop as a trainer, coach, educator, and administrator.
    Watson enjoyed a highly-successful 11-year run with the baseball program, winning 10 WVIAC North Division crowns along with five conference championships and five NAIA Tournament bids. A few years after stepping down as baseball coach to focus on his expanding duties as Head Athletic Trainer, Watson was named Director of Athletics in 1989.
    Watson spent more than a quarter-century as Athletic Director before his retirement in 2016 and is remembered as a driving force behind the WVIAC's transition from NAIA to NCAA affiliation. He served on numerous NCAA committees at the regional and national levels and guided the construction of the Academic, Sports and Recreation Complex while steering extensive renovations and upgrades for all of the university's athletic facilities.