Michael McCree will forever be remembered as a member of the 2009 CAA Championship team and for his SportsCenter Top 10 catch in NCAA Regional play against Georgia Tech. McCree made 99 starts in a Panther uniform, playing in 158 games, but it was his play in that championship – batting .357 including a clutch home run over No. 27 George Mason – that will forever go down in GSU lore. He has remained in the game of baseball since graduation after working in the Georgia State Athletics Department for a couple of years.

Talk a little bit about what you have been up to the last 10'ish years since finishing up at Georgia State (work, sports, and family)
After finishing my senior year of baseball at GSU in 2009, I entered the Sport Administration Master's Program (also at GSU). While there, I worked as a graduate assistant in the academic department for athletics.

When I completed my master's, I got into coaching part-time as a private instructor. Shortly after, I also started working at GSU as an academic advisor. Currently, I'm serving as an advisor for our MBA program students.

My path eventually led me to coaching travel teams in the metro Atlanta area on evenings and weekends. Fortunately, it's given me the opportunity to meet lots of great families, coaches and players. I've been blessed to be able to give back to youth and to have the chance to help so many players.

I have written two books with the focus on helping create a better player experience. This year, I released my first film, The Mental Mastery of Hitting in Baseball. I plan to create more content with the purpose of helping players develop.

How did your experience at GSU help you get to where you are now?
I met so many great people at GSU, I am truly fortunate. I grew up in Gwinnett County, so "going off to college" 30 minutes away wasn't too much of a concern.  Most of my high school friends came to GSU as well. So not only did I have some familiarity with people on campus when I arrived, I automatically had 30-plus new friends when I showed up (the baseball team). I've met more life-long connections through GSU than perhaps anywhere else.

What is one thing you would go back and tell your college self?
Be more in the present moment. Time moves fast. Take advantage of the resources you have around you. Give encouragement to people when you feel they need it. Even if you don't think they need it, give it anyway because you can never be certain. Oh, and don't eat Philly cheesesteaks and double cheese burgers in the cafeteria every day!"

You were a part of arguably the most special season in program history – the 2009 CAA Championship season which led to the NCAA Atlanta Regional. What was that season like?
The 2009 season felt like a perfect ending. We got really hot towards the end of the year. We had everything clicking at the right time. I felt like everyone's role was solidified by the end of the year and everyone played their parts flawlessly.

Derek Simmons was my roommate for the CAA Championship in Wilmington. In our first game of the tournament, I scored from 2^nd base on a walk-off hit by him to win the game. When we got back to the hotel, we talked about how we had a feeling we could win the whole thing! I remember everyone being "locked in" the whole tournament.

In the NCAA Regional against Georgia Tech, you had maybe one of the greatest catches in program history. Would you call that your favorite play of all time or do you have another?
People still ask me about that catch to this day. I still have the scar on the inside of my left elbow to show for it. To have done it in front of a sold-out crowd at Georgia Tech, between two Atlanta schools, in the middle of the city -- made it even more special. Was it my "best" catch? Honestly, I don't think so. I had other catches that I felt like would have given that one a run for its money. Of course, most of those were not caught on film. I did rob a homerun at Mercer once in centerfield.
You played for assistant coach Brad Stromdahl, now the Panthers current head coach. Give us your best story/stories about him.
Brad is a "player's coach" and creates an enjoyable atmosphere, which makes him a fun coach to play for. He was very easy to talk to when he assisted during my playing days. We had a lot of great times with him during those years.

All of the baseball alumni are rooting for the success of the program. I believe within the next couple of years, Georgia State baseball will have a huge amount of success. We are all also very excited about the new stadium being built downtown.