Stephen Cecil Webber, a beloved husband, father, grandfather and coach, died peacefully at his home on November 12, 2022 with his wife of 51 years, Pam, and their daughter Ashley at his side. He was 74 years old.
Steve was born in Fairfield, Iowa on November 21, 1947 to Harold M. and Arveda (Peck) Webber. He was raised in Stockport, Iowa, a small farm town, where he exhibited rare athletic talent from an early age. Steve graduated from Van Buren High School in Keosauqua, Iowa in 1966 where he lettered in baseball, basketball and track and played the trombone. He set several Iowa high school records as a pitcher, including one for the most strikeouts (23) in a seven-inning game, a record which still stands today.
After graduating high school, Steve attended Muscatine Community College, where he played basketball and baseball, leading his team to the State Championship in 1968 as the ace starting pitcher. He continued his education and baseball playing career at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, where he pitched for two seasons, including an appearance in the 1969 College World Series. Steve received his bachelor’s degree from SIU in physical education in 1971 and a master’s degree in health education in 1973.
On December 18, 1971, Steve married the love of his life, Pamela (Mauzy) Webber in Joliet, Illinois. Although drafted by the Baltimore Orioles, he had a passion for coaching and educating and began his incredibly successful coaching career in 1974 as a pitching coach at Georgia Southern University. In 1976 he was hired as the pitching coach at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Ashley was born two years later in 1978. Steve remained in Gainesville until 1980, when he was hired as the head coach of the University of Georgia, the youngest head baseball coach in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) at that time.
Between 1981 and 1996, Steve tallied 500 wins in 16 seasons at UGA. He took the Bulldogs to their first ever College World Series in 1987 after winning the SEC regular season title, giving him the rare distinction of both playing and coaching in a College World Series. In 1990, he led his team back to the World Series, where they won a National Championship, the first in baseball for both UGA and the SEC. Steve was named SEC Coach of the Year in 1987 and National Coach of the Year in 1990. He remains the winningest baseball coach in UGA history.
Steve’s tenure at UGA was a family affair. Pam created and led the “batgirl” program, the Diamond Darlings, and she and Ashley took an active role in recruiting dinners at their home and end-of-season celebrations. Pam hosted a spaghetti dinner every February for the players before the start of the season. Pam and Ashley rarely missed a game and rode with Steve and the team on the bus to away games. As a child, Ashley was an honorary batgirl and wore her father’s number, 27, on her uniform and often sat in the dugout next to Steve.
In 1997, Steve began his 21-year professional baseball career with the New York Yankees as a minor league pitching coach and Coordinator of Instruction. He went on to serve as a pitching coach at the Double-A and Triple-A levels for the San Diego Padres and Houston Astros. He retired in 2016 after serving as a pitching consultant and coach for the Atlanta Braves.
In 2018, Steve was inducted into UGA’s Circle of Honor, which is designed to pay tribute to extraordinary student-athletes and coaches who, by their performance and conduct, have brought honor to the university and themselves, and who by their actions have contributed to the tradition of the Georgia Bulldogs. One of the accolades that meant the most to him was his induction into the Van Buren High School Hall of Fame in 2019. Steve took great pride in being an Iowan and immensely enjoyed his annual visits to see family and friends near his hometown of Stockport.
While Steve’s professional accolades were extraordinary, he will be remembered best for his accomplishments off the field. His desire for learning and teaching never stopped. He was incredibly well read and an astute historian of baseball and Iowa history. Steve’s greatest legacy was being a life-long teacher and mentor to hundreds of people, including his daughter, Ashley, and his precious grandchildren. He taught each of them how to live a life of integrity, honesty and humility by modeling those character traits as a leader, friend, brother, husband, father and grandfather. He is irreplaceable and will be missed beyond measure.
Steve was preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Arveda Webber and his namesake, his grandson Webber Bennett Broach.
Steve is survived by his wife Pam, his daughter Ashley, his son-in-law Joe, his grandchildren Bo, Whit and Bess Broach and his sister Linda Feezor.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations for the Steve Webber Scholarship Fund which will be granted to a deserving student-athlete from Steve’s alma mater, Van Buren High School, who exhibits the traits of leadership, integrity and determination.
