Pat McQuaid led the baseball program at Nova High School in Davie, Florida, from 1976-2020. Over 44 seasons, he became one of the winningest coaches in state history, guiding his alma mater to a 947-343-2 (.734) record. At the time of his retirement, he ranked second in the state of Florida in career wins, trailing only ABCA Hall of Fame coach Rich Hofman.
Under McQuaid, Nova captured 25 district titles while advancing to the final four of the state playoffs on five occasions. The Titans won back-to-back Class 5A Florida state championships in 2004 and 2005, with his 2005 squad tabbed National Champions by Student Sports Fab 50.
McQuaid was twice named Florida Dairy Farmers Baseball Coach of the Year, receiving the honor following both the 2004 and 2005 seasons, and was a 10-time Broward County Baseball Coach of the Year.
The Nova baseball program produced several professional players under McQuaid’s leadership, including 12-year major-leaguer and World Series champion Mike Morse, as well as pitcher Anthony Swarzak. In total, more than 30 of his former student athletes were drafted by professional teams and over 250 played at the collegiate level. To honor him, the field at Nova High School was named “Pat McQuaid Field.”
In addition to his baseball coaching duties, McQuaid served as Nova’s Athletic Director from 2001-20 and coached both the football and cross country teams.
A Lifetime Member of the ABCA, McQuaid was a featured clinician at both the 2007 and 2015 ABCA Conventions.
McQuaid has been inducted into multiple halls of fame, including the Broward County Sports Hall of Fame, the Florida High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, the Florida Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame and the Broward Education Foundation Hall of Fame.
Off the field, McQuaid served as the baseball chairman for the Florida Athletic Coaches Association and was also a member of the Florida High School Athletic Association Baseball Advisory Committee.
A Virginia native, McQuaid was a multi-sport athlete at Nova. He would go on to play baseball and football at Catawba College in Salisbury, North Carolina, and later attended Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, where he received a master’s degree in physical education and a doctoral degree in administration.
