Bob Vetter, a Hall of Fame manager who led the Comets to more than 500 wins in 24 seasons, died suddenly on Saturday, January 22.<\/p>\n
SAN MARCOS \u2014 Bob Vetter arrived at Palomar College in 1977. Over the next 45 years\u2014including 24 years as head coach of the baseball team\u2014Vetter shaped a program that bears his legacy, finally being inducted into the California Community College Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2007.<\/p>\n
Vetter died on Saturday, January 22 at the age of 71. Friends and colleagues say he served Palomar\u2019s student athletes until the very end.<\/p>\n
Palomar College Athletic Director Daniel Lynds described Vetter as both a brilliant coach and a skilled administrator whose leadership was crucial to the development of strong sports and academic programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cBob was one of the rare individuals who thrived in both areas\u2014he had the passion of a coach and the intellect of an academic,\u201d said Lynds. \u201cThe outpouring we\u2019ve received from around the country, from players that he coached, has been remarkable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lynds said a celebration of Vetter\u2019s life will be held in the coming weeks: \u201cWe\u2019re going to celebrate because that\u2019s certainly what he would have wanted. And we\u2019ll do our best to carry on his legacy at Palomar College.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ben Adams, the current head coach at Palomar, described Vetter with words like accountability, integrity and pride. Vetter was on Adams\u2019 staff this season and his loss was felt immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat he was able to do with his student athletes\u2014and how successful they were off the field as well as on it\u2014that was a tribute to what was important to him,\u201d said Adams, whom Vetter hired as an assistant coach in 2004.<\/p>\n
Vetter ended his career as head coach at Palomar with a stunning record of 542 wins and 393 losses, including eight conference championships and a second-place finish in the state tournament in 2005.<\/p>\n
He returned in 2016 as an assistant coach. But it was another development that year which made the headlines.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis biggest legacy, outside of the program in wins and losses, is in the new baseball field that we opened in 2016,\u201d said Adams. \u201cHe drew up the plans for the place, it was his vision, his baby, and when it all got done, it had his fingerprints all over it. And he did a magnificent job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lynds said the Athletic Department will be honoring Vetter \u201cin various ways throughout the year,\u201d such as playing the fight song of the University of Oklahoma, his alma mater.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you\u2019ll see the number 5 on a lot of our athletic facilities\u20145 was Bob\u2019s number, and when you see it on campus, he\u2019s who it will be referring to,\u201d said Lynds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"