In 30 seasons as head coach, he led Seton Hall to 10 NCAA tournaments and two College World Series.
[a][1] After playing for Ownie Carroll at Seton Hall, Sheppard coached high school baseball.
In 1974, Seton Hall went 3–0 in the District 2 Regional to reach the College World Series, where it lost to Southern Illinois, 5–1, and Texas, 12–2.
[5] In the 1990s, Seton Hall won a regular-season conference championship in 1990 and was placed second multiple times but failed to qualify for an NCAA tournament.
Future major leaguers Mike Moriarty, Matt Morris, and Jason Grilli played for Sheppard during the decade.
In March 2003, Steve Politi of the Newark Star-Ledger published an article in which former players and their parents accused Sheppard, an ex-Marine, of using harsh punishments and racial slurs.
Others, including other Former players, fellow coaches, and media members, defended Sheppard and argued there was no proof of such behavior.
Including games during the 2001, when his son Rob served as interim head coach, Sheppard retired with 998 career victories.
Rob served as Seton Hall's interim head coach in 2004 before being named to the position permanently for the 2005 season.