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TORONTO -- Brian Perkins could hardly believe it when he received the letter.
Now several days, hundreds of text messages of congratulations and a lot of reflection later, the Toronto High School head baseball coach still finds it hard to believe, but he sure is excited.
Such is the emotion when you've been elected for induction to a hall of fame.
Perkins, the highly successful and personable Red Knight skipper, has been voted into the Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
"To open that letter and read what it said ... it was very surreal," Perkins said. "It was totally unexpected, but it was also very exciting. It was a thrilling moment that I was just thrilled to be able to call my wife and kids and let them know."
Perkins will be formally inducted to the hall of fame on Jan. 20 during a banquet held in conjunction with the baseball coaches clinic in Columbus.
"I am not really sure when all of this will truly hit me," Perkins said. "I've never coached a day for individual honors or accolades. I love the game and the relationships that come with (coaching). But, I am deeply humbled and grateful for the honor."
Often times when you hear hall of fame and coaches, it's honoring someone who has retired or is very close to retiring depending upon the guidelines established by the respective hall. For Perkins, however, neither one is close.
Fresh off winning yet another OVAC title this past spring and advancing to yet another Division IV Eastern District championship game, Perkins is already counting down the months and days until he's back on the Red Knight Baseball Complex diamond for the 2023 season.
"This will be my 30th year (of coaching), and I always told my wife that as long as I'm having fun, I'll continue to coach. Honestly, I am having a blast," Perkins said. "I enjoy everything about it. From the kids to the off-season workouts and into the season. I've honestly not even thought about the end."
Who can blame him?
Toronto's run of success on the diamond since Perkins joined the staff has been truly unmatched in the Ohio Valley.
Perkins was hired as an assistant coach the same year that Matt Morrison was hired as the head coach in 1994.
"I remember getting a call from Toronto that they wanted to hire me, but they told me, 'we're going to hire this guy named Matt Morrison for our baseball job," Perkins recalled. "It didn't bother me at all. Matt and I were good friends and I absolutely knew I'd love coaching with him. It worked out very well. I learned so much from him, and we remain great friends to this day."
The Red Knights climbed to the top of Ohio's small-school baseball mountain in 1998 winning the Division IV state title.
Toronto really hasn't looked back since.
"For us to win a state title just four years after getting hired and being able to share it with Matt, who was a college teammate of mine at West Liberty, was truly special," Perkins said. "I was just a 20-something-year-old-guy and I thought, 'wow, this is is easy.'"
Unlike many assistant coaches, Perkins wasn't in an immediate hurry to ascend to a head-coaching job. He was quite content in the role he had.
"I wasn't even thinking about being a head coach," Perkins said. "I was happy coaching under Mo, enjoyed the players we had and was just excited to be able to coach in a community that took so much pride in baseball."
However, Morrison stepped down from the post to pursue school administration and the Red Knights made what proved to be a wise and easy decision of promoting Perkins to head coach.
"When Mo stepped down, I knew (Toronto) was the place I wanted to be for my career," Perkins said. "I've always just wanted to continue what Matt and others before us started."
Since taking over, clearly the Red Knights have shown no letup. And that doesn't just mean their on-field success, which included a state title in 2019 when the Knights defeated Hillsdale, 3-1, in Akron. Toronto's facilities are some of the best in the area with the KBC fashioning a turf infield, a separate workout/hitting facility as well as other ammenities.
"It goes back to the support we're given from the school district, the families and the community," Perkins said. "Kids in Toronto grow up watching these games and want to be a part of it. We have a fantastic youth (baseball) league and we've been fortunate enough to build a culture where kids start young and it becomes important to them."
A bunch of good players also go a long way in helping coaches formulate a resume such as the one Perkins owns. All told, 42 former Red Knight players have gone on to play collegiately since Perkins arrived.
"We take a lot of pride in that number and hope it continues to grow," Perkins said. "Seeing our kids be able to realize a dream and play in college is one of the most rewarding things for me as a coach."
The next factor that's been very been very beneficial for Perkins and the entire Red Knight program is consistency on the coaching staff. Perkins has worked with Richie Crowe and Bill Stone for basically his entire tenure. Both were recognized previously as Ohio Assistant Coach of the Year.
"We've had some turnover of coaches, but I've been fortunate to have a lot of guys who have been with me for more than a decade," Perkins said.
Add the players, facilities, support and coaching together and it's quite a recipe. It's worked out to 370 wins for Perkins, nine state poll titles, two regional titles and 27 consecutive trips to the district tournament.
While none of the accolades have been this big, Perkins has racked up quite the resume of honors. He's been Eastern District Coach of the Year seven times and Ohio State Coach of the Year five times. He was the OVAC Coach of the Year, which includes all sports, in 2020.