LSU reportedly considering active SEC coach to replace Paul Mainieri updated:reportedly Jay Johnson

Or Coach Sullivan for that matter.

 

from the Advocate Sports
The latest: Paul Mainieri says Virginia's Brian O'Connor won't succeed him as LSU's coach

• Mainieri said in an interview that O'Connor "wouldn't bite" at his appeal to succeed him as LSU's coach. Meanwhile, our Wilson Alexander writes that LSU baseball recruits are playing the waiting game as well, and not too comfortably.
• 
  Three weeks have passed since Mainieri’s announcement, and LSU continues to look for a new coach, a process that is expected to stretch into this week and possibly further as LSU evaluates candidates coaching at the College World Series, sources said.

 

Maybe LSU has an inflated opinion of itself in regards to their baseball program.

 

Who is Coach Sullivan? Is he any good?

 

They made a movie about Chesley Sullenberger called "Sully" starring Tom Hanks.

Based on a true story.

Can he coach?

 

No, he Business Class

 

LOL.

Great pilot.

Probably jump seat when not on the clock.

 

OK. Now I'm okay with the comments. Not that it matters to anyone. Glad it got away from talking about Sully.

 

They feel that they can just buy anyone's coach from their respective programs (including very successful, long-tenured conference rivals).

 

It's a top 3 job they should. Just doing their due diligence. As I l've said, Casey is still a dark horse. However, McConnell and TN coach are strong candidates.

 

Sounds like UK going after Billy D.

 

Funny … I think

 

Is this just your opinion that LSU's baseball coaching position is a top 3 job or do you have facts to back that up? I totally respect any opinion if it's stated as such, but when thrown out as a fact I like to see supporting evidence.

 

I mean by what metric is it not???

6 NCs (tied for 2nd with Texas)
Leads nation in attendance every year
Fantastic road support as well
State scholarship system to help with scholarships
Great state for talent with inroads to Texas and neighboring states
Year round baseball weather

I don’t think LSU needs justification as a top 3 job. I am biased but Texas is a better job. Easier road, better history, more money, better recruiting, and a MUCH better town.

After Texas, you will be able to name 3-5 other schools that are probably close but none easily beat LSU. Most are probably better in some ways and not as good in others.

 

In all due respect, you don't understand college baseball, if you don't have LSU in your the top 3. Skip built it into a powerhouse with more resources than most any. Having almost signed with LSU to playing against them, it's a different experience and environment.

Go do your own research if you need further convincing. I'll give you the phone number of Jerry Ford or one of the owners of D-1 baseball if you'd like......

 

You gave a lot of good information to justify your opinion.

 

I'm not disagreeing with your opinion. In fact, I tend to agree. However, too many people throw out a well thought out opinion as fact when there is no way to definitively establish it as such. For example, an argument could be made for Arizona State, Cal- State Fullerton, Texas and Rice to claim to be a top 3 D1 program based on the fact that since 1999 they have had more MLB draft picks than any other school. Or, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Florida and UCLA could make that claim because in the last 10 years these school have had more draft picks than anyone else. https://www.collegebaseball.info/post/which-colleges-produce-the-most-mlb-draft-picks
In 2019, D1 Baseball ranked the Top 3 baseball programs as Florida, Vanderbilt & Arkansas, with LSU #4.
The top 100 programs in college baseball, according to d1baseball.com
Or how about a ranking of the D1 programs who have produced the most "impact" MLB players? Long Beach State is #1, Arizona State #2, UCLA #3. The Best College Baseball Teams At Producing Impact MLB Players Over The Last 20 Years
Another site ranked the top D1 baseball schools for student-athletes, taking academics and graduation rates into consideration. The Top 3 were Stanford, Florida and Harvard. LSU wasn't even in the Top 50. Ridiculous, I know, but here it is: https://www.ncsasports.org/best-colleges/best-division-1-baseball-colleges My point is that people who are building a case for their particular opinion pick and choose the criteria they use to formulate their decisions. You made a very good case for your subjective opinion. I respect that. I do know a lot about college baseball and other sports. I, also, know quite a bit about debate, argument and distinguishing between objective fact and subjective opinion. There is a difference.

 

Jay Johnson out of Arizona is what I have heard.

 

The Advocate reports
LSU has reached an agreement with Arizona coach Jay Johnson to become its next baseball coach, multiple sources with knowledge of the situation said Thursday evening, ending a nearly month-long search to replace Paul Mainieri.
LSU is set to hire Arizona coach Jay Johnson as its next baseball coach, multiple sources with knowledge of the situation said Thursday evening, ending a nearly month-long search to replace Paul Mainieri.

Johnson, 44, coached at Arizona for six seasons. During his tenure, the Wildcats reached two College World Series. They finished runner-up to Coastal Carolina in 2016 — his first season as the coach — and were the first team eliminated this year.

Johnson had a 208-114 record at Arizona, which marked his first head coaching job at a Power 5 conference school. After going to the College World Series in his first season, Arizona didn’t advance past an NCAA regional until this year, when it went 45-18 and won the Pac 12 conference. Johnson was named the league’s coach of the year.


Johnson earned a reported $856,687 this season, suggesting LSU was able to top his current salary. Though terms of the deal were not immediately known, the school paid Mainieri $1.225 million per year, according to his last contract.

After 15 seasons as LSU’s coach, Mainieri retired last month with three years left on his contract, primarily citing health concerns.

As LSU looked for Mainieri’s replacement, the school also considered Florida coach Kevin O'Sullivan, former Oregon State coach Pat Casey, Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco, East Carolina coach Cliff Godwin and Notre Dame coach Link Jarrett, multiple sources said over the past month.

Johnson will become LSU’s fourth head coach since Skip Bertman took over in 1984 and turned LSU into one of the most successful college baseball programs in the country. The Tigers, who own six national championships, haven’t reached the College World Series since 2017.

LSU hopes Johnson can return the program to annual championship contention. In his first season at Arizona, the Wildcats had a 49-24 record, which marked the second-most wins in school history. They came one win from beating Coastal Carolina for the national title.

Arizona returned to the NCAA tournament the next year, making Johnson the first coach in Arizona history to reach the NCAA tournament in his first two seasons. The Wildcats missed the postseason the next two years. After the coronavirus-shortened season, Arizona made the College World Series once again this summer. It went 0-2 with losses to Vanderbilt and Stanford.

Johnson has spent his life along the West Coast, giving him no known previous ties to Louisiana. He graduated in 2001 from Point Loma Nazarene, a Christian liberal arts college in San Diego. Johnson coached there for four seasons, serving as the head coach in 2005, before he became the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at San Diego. Then, in his first stop as a head coach, Johnson spent two seasons at Nevada before he reached Arizona.

 

Big loss for Arizona as he had resurrected that program. Money talks I guess. Arizona is a top program and should have no trouble hiring another good coach, tho it is late in the year. Seems like the Wildcats have had quite the turnover in coaches for all sports lately.