Rousey all done at CSUN

"When I took over the program, the cupboard was bare and we had to restart," Rousey said. "But, we were able to come along and get it to where we put together one of our best recruiting classes going into next season.

"I'm disappointed that we will not have the chance to bear the fruits of our labor because I think the program is ready to take off."

Many local athletes played under Rousey at CSUN, including his son, PJ He brought in players from Glendale Community College, including Al Quintana, Eddie Camacho, Ivan Lopez and Keith Bowman and saw former Crescenta Valley High graduate Bryan Longpre transfer to CSUN from Grossmont College prior to the 2009 campaign.

Longpre, who just completed his senior season, said Rousey's dismissal caught him off guard.

"He's probably the main reason why I went to CSUN," said Longpre, a pitcher who went 2-1 with a 4.54 earned-run average and 27 strikeouts to 12 walks this season. "I had offers from other schools but wanted to play for him.

"I was a little surprised he was let go because we had a winning season. He was fair and stern when he needed to be and I owe all of my success to him."

Rousey helped pitch Cal State Fullerton to the 1984 NCAA championship, spent parts of five seasons in the Seattle Mariners and Montreal Expos organizations and coached in the Cape Cod League.

During the last five summers, Rousey ran the annual Northridge Baseball Camp. Bringing in participants from the area and surrounding communities, Rousey and his assistants worked with campers on the fundamentals of the sport to help them prepare for the possibility of competing at the high school level and, perhaps, beyond.

Going forward, he said he hopes to coach again.

"Baseball and teaching are my passion," Rousey said. "Given my druthers, I'd like to continue to do what I love."