by Malcolm Butler
Emmit Fouts is living a dream.
And the nine-year-old son of Cooper and Bri Fouts doesn’t even know it.
Not yet.
Cooper Fouts just completed his third year as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.
His job is college baseball. His life is college baseball.
It’s one reason that his wife Bri and three children, Harper, Emmit and Nash, spend quite a bit of their lives around JC Love Field at Pat Patterson Park … and plenty of other college baseball stadiums.
“Our whole family loves to see Cooper doing what he loves to do and what he is best at,” said Bri. “He is thriving when he is down there. It makes us happy to see him happy. It’s just been such a positive experience for our whole family.”
“It’s a tribute to Bri,” said Cooper. “There aren’t games where they miss. The kids are here. She is here. That’s all Bri because there are things going on. This is our life. This is who we are. This is a priority for our family. She makes such a sacrifice to make sure he is here and so that is awesome.”
Despite the fact that the goal is to be at every game, sometimes busy schedules and conflicts interfere. It was one such day back in 2022 when Emmit began a journey that has led to being the envy of most little boys his age.
Emmit, who has served as the bat boy for the Bulldogs the past three seasons, got his chance to move up to the “big leagues” and he hasn’t looked back since.
“It kind of happened by accident,” said Bri. “We didn’t really plan it. Baseball season was going on and all three of our kids were also playing ball. I am trying to run them around to their games. My other two had games and Emit didn’t. So Cooper said, ‘Why don’t you just drop him off with me, and I will keep him in the dugout.’”
The Bulldogs won that midweek game and Emmit became a fixture.
“I didn’t want to presume it was okay so I asked Coach Burroughs,” said Cooper. “He said, ‘Absolutely. Jackson used to do it.’ And then we won. So, it was now, ‘Okay, he can come back next game.’”
Burroughs said he believes that fathers and their children should be together in a working environment whenever the opportunities present themselves.
“In today’s age kids don’t see us at our best,” said Burroughs, whose son Jackson spent plenty of time around the ballpark and in dugouts while growing up. “We go to work, and they are doing whatever. We come home, and we are exhausted. We are hungry. And they don’t get our best a lot of times.
“That’s one reason I like kids being around us. I want them to see their dad when they are at their best. Those are memories that Emmit will carry on forever. I want the kids, I want the wives, around as much as possible.”
It’s an opportunity for Cooper and Emmit to get some QT together.
“Every dad that I have been around that has coached their son or had their son around it, nobody has ever had a bad experience doing it,” said Cooper. “Nobody is ever disappointed that it happens. They are all so thankful.
“He loves it. He certainly isn’t aware of how lucky he is. As a dad to see him … I have done a terrible job of appreciating the moment. I say that very honestly. Sitting here talking about it, I appreciate it infinitely more. To see him every day and to spend time with him because I do miss so much. So those times when we can be together is special.”
So for the past three seasons, Emmit has had the opportunity to watch his dad and the Bulldog players in action.
“My favorite part is probably being with the guys and being able to talk to them,” said Emmit. “They are really nice to me. They always play catch with me if I want to. They hang out with me and talk to me.”
Emmit has been brought into the college baseball “fraternity” and embraced by the Bulldog players. It’s been not only heart-warming to his parents, but also a wonderful opportunity to learn about life.
“The players are such good role models for him,” said Bri. “I don’t know if he realizes it now but down the road it will set in how fortunate he was to be around them and to have all these incredible role models.
“These are kids that have been working their whole lives to be able to play college baseball. They are earning their degrees. They are awesome examples for him to be around. A lot of kids would give anything to be in his shoes, so he is pretty lucky.”
Nicknamed Snow Leopard by former Bulldog Taylor Young – “They gave me the spirit animal name the Snow Leopard because of my freckles” – Emmit gets to see his Dad in action even if it’s from afar at times.
“He never really talks to me too much,” said Emmit. “He is mostly focused on the game. He is usually a little nervous before the game. I think it’s really cool to be able to see him work and to be able to be there with him.”
“To walk out and to see him and give him a high five and a hug and just ask him how his day was and this and that, it’s just unbelievable,” said Cooper.
Emmit’s in-game responsibilities of being the bat boy don’t come without some level of risk, but he has learned – sometimes the hard way – of how to do his job.
“My first year I was running out to get one of the bats, I forget who it was, and he was swinging it and it hit me in the face,” said Emmit with a smile on his freckled face.
“Fortunately, he wasn’t swinging real hard,” said Bri. “There have been a couple of close calls where he was running by and they were on deck swinging (the bat), and it made me nervous. They have done a good job of telling him when to go out and making sure he is wearing his helmet. They gave him a lot of directions. Now he knows what he is doing. It was a little scary (at first).”
As fun as it is seeing his dad in action, maybe the biggest benefit to a nine-year-old is the access to college baseball players on a daily basis.
“The way our players treat him …. It really started two years ago when they gave him the nickname the Snow Leopard because everyone had a nickname,” said Cooper. “He has a sticker on the back of his helmet of a snow leopard.
“It started with those older guys like (Taylor Young) and Steele (Netterville) … those guys were so good to him. They are just so good to him. And then it has transferred down to Logan (McLeod) who has been unbelievable to him for three years. This year it’s Mike Ballard who is always giving him a high five. They have all really embraced him.”
“He is kind of like the mascot,” said Burroughs. “He is like a little brother that some of them may not have.”
McLeod said in addition to being a great little guy, Emmit provides some value to the dugout during games.
“He is awesome,” said McLeod. “He brings a lot of energy to the dugout. I am an older brother myself with two younger brothers, so I have always had that older brother in me. It’s nice to have him around. He kind of keeps things light. Whenever things get serious, he just goes out there and plays and likes to have fun like anyone else.”
So what happens when things do get too serious during a game?
“Coop has good awareness,” said Burroughs. “If things start going crazy and I am getting hot tempered, he will send Emmit out of the dugout.”
“The one guideline we have is when we are getting beat and it’s getting ugly, he is like, ‘Hey Dad. I’m going to go up and see Mama,’” said Cooper.
The past three years have brought plenty of cool experiences for Emmit, from regular season titles, tournament titles and two NCAA Regional appearances.
It may be hard to pick a favorite moment … or maybe it’s not.
“It was probably when we won the conference championships (in Hattiesburg in 2022),” said Emmit referring to Steele Netterville’s walk-off single in the title game. “It was really cool to get a big win and to be able to be a part of it.”
Although the 2024 season has come to an end and summertime activities have taken the place on Emmit’s busy schedule, the Snow Leopard said he plans to be right back in the dugout come 2025.
More games. More lifetime experiences. More time to spend with the players. And more time with Dad.
“The things that we have been able to be a part of here at LA Tech are things he will never forget,” said Cooper. “It’s just been awesome. We are thankful.”
