Rick Cabrera wins Panhandle Conference Coach of the Year

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (March 3, 2023) – All-Panhandle Conference Teams and Awards were released by the FCSAA on Friday afternoon, and after winning a share of the Panhandle Conference, head coach Rick Cabrera was named Panhandle Conference Coach of the Year alongside Chipola's Donnie Tyndall and Northwest Florida State's Steve DeMeo. The three were all named Coach of the Year after tying for first place in the Panhandle Conference.

Now in his second season with TCC, Cabrera is 47-14 (.770). He led the Eagles to their seventh Panhandle Conference Championship during the regular season, and the team enters the FCSAA/NJCAA Region 8 Tournament as the #3 seed. In the final Region 8 Coaches' Poll they finished second behind only Chipola, who they went 2-1 against in the regular season. In the final NJCAA rankings, the team finished seventh. They were ranked as high as third during the regular season. 

Winning the FCSAA/Region 8 Tournament next weekend in Niceville would give TCC an automatic bid to the NJCAA Division I Tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas. However, if the Eagles fall short in Niceville, their resume would put them in contention for one of the eight at-large bids for the national tournament.