NOTREDAMECHIEF
Legend
this sucks..........
Bye, bye, Notre Dame; hello Bayou
Irish baseball coach Paul Mainieri will be announced as LSU's new coach today.
FORREST MILLER
Tribune Staff Writer
Walking in the same path as a legend is risky, but from all indications, Notre Dame baseball coach Paul Mainieri is willing to take that risk.
LSU's sports information director for baseball William Franques confirmed late Tuesday night that Mainieri will be announced as the Tigers' new coach at a 1 p.m. EDT press conference today in Baton Rouge, La.
Mainieri would be following a legend once removed. From 1984 through 2001, Skip Bertman was the patriarch of LSU baseball. He guided the Tigers to the College World Series 11 times and won the title five times.
Former assistant Smoke Laval then took over, and when the Tigers were not included in the 64-team NCAA Tournament field this season, Laval was asked to resign, or if you prefer, fired.
Bertman, who moved into LSU's athletic director's role after coaching, had pondered returning to the coaches' box himself, although he had said he would do so only if he could not find someone with whom he would be comfortable as a new coach.
For the past couple of days, Mainieri had told reporters that he had not been offered the job, and that he had no idea if the job would be offered. But those close to the scene in Baton Rouge believed he would accept all along if offered.
"At this point, everything has gone very well,'' Mainieri told the Baton Rouge Advocate. "Skip Bertman made it very clear to me that he was not going to offer the job on the phone to anybody. He needs a face-to-face meeting before he's going to offer. And I wouldn't accept the job unless I was there in person and felt very good about the situation.''
Several candidates have already turned down the job, according to the Advocate. Those include Alabama coach Jim Wells, Mississippi coach Mike Bianco and Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin. Ray Tanner of South Carolina and George Horton of Cal State Fullerton declined to be interviewed.
Among others reportedly interviewed was College of Charleston coach John Pawlowski. Charleston used a 16-inning victory over Notre Dame as a springboard to the NCAA Lexington Regional championship earlier this month.
In 12 seasons at Notre Dame, Mainieri has compiled a 533-213-3 record. His overall head coaching record is 864-492-4. His Division I record, including six years at Air Force, is 685-371-3. He led the Irish to the 2002 College World Series and to 40 or more wins in 11 of his 12 seasons in South Bend. Notre Dame was 45-16-1 this past season.
One writer even went so far as to say that present Irish assistants Terry Rooney and Cliff Godwin would move with Mainieri. It would seem logical that either or both would be candidates for the head coaching position at Notre Dame.
At LSU, Mainieri will be reunited with pitcher Derik Olvey, who was 2-2 with a 5.59 ERA in 48 innings for the 2005 Irish. Olvey transferred to LSU and became the ace of the staff last season. He is rehabbing from recent Tommy John arm surgery.
"From my experience, he's a big pitching-and-defense guy,'' Olvey told the Advocate. "I don't know if that's the style of baseball he recruited for, being in the North, where the ball doesn't fly. This year they had a pretty good offensive club.''
Mainieri, who played for LSU as a freshman infielder and two more seasons at nearby University of New Orleans, will depart Notre Dame under circumstances similar to the man he replaced, Pat Murphy.
Murphy was 318-116-1 in seven seasons at Notre Dame before leaving for Arizona State, a school like LSU, where the national championship is the goal every season.
Arizona State, like LSU, has won five national championships. While Murphy has not won one yet at ASU, the Sun Devils have made it to the College World Series twice during his tenure, losing to USC in the 1998 championship game.
Tribune staff writer Eric Hansen also contributed to this story.
Bye, bye, Notre Dame; hello Bayou
Irish baseball coach Paul Mainieri will be announced as LSU's new coach today.
FORREST MILLER
Tribune Staff Writer
Walking in the same path as a legend is risky, but from all indications, Notre Dame baseball coach Paul Mainieri is willing to take that risk.
LSU's sports information director for baseball William Franques confirmed late Tuesday night that Mainieri will be announced as the Tigers' new coach at a 1 p.m. EDT press conference today in Baton Rouge, La.
Mainieri would be following a legend once removed. From 1984 through 2001, Skip Bertman was the patriarch of LSU baseball. He guided the Tigers to the College World Series 11 times and won the title five times.
Former assistant Smoke Laval then took over, and when the Tigers were not included in the 64-team NCAA Tournament field this season, Laval was asked to resign, or if you prefer, fired.
Bertman, who moved into LSU's athletic director's role after coaching, had pondered returning to the coaches' box himself, although he had said he would do so only if he could not find someone with whom he would be comfortable as a new coach.
For the past couple of days, Mainieri had told reporters that he had not been offered the job, and that he had no idea if the job would be offered. But those close to the scene in Baton Rouge believed he would accept all along if offered.
"At this point, everything has gone very well,'' Mainieri told the Baton Rouge Advocate. "Skip Bertman made it very clear to me that he was not going to offer the job on the phone to anybody. He needs a face-to-face meeting before he's going to offer. And I wouldn't accept the job unless I was there in person and felt very good about the situation.''
Several candidates have already turned down the job, according to the Advocate. Those include Alabama coach Jim Wells, Mississippi coach Mike Bianco and Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin. Ray Tanner of South Carolina and George Horton of Cal State Fullerton declined to be interviewed.
Among others reportedly interviewed was College of Charleston coach John Pawlowski. Charleston used a 16-inning victory over Notre Dame as a springboard to the NCAA Lexington Regional championship earlier this month.
In 12 seasons at Notre Dame, Mainieri has compiled a 533-213-3 record. His overall head coaching record is 864-492-4. His Division I record, including six years at Air Force, is 685-371-3. He led the Irish to the 2002 College World Series and to 40 or more wins in 11 of his 12 seasons in South Bend. Notre Dame was 45-16-1 this past season.
One writer even went so far as to say that present Irish assistants Terry Rooney and Cliff Godwin would move with Mainieri. It would seem logical that either or both would be candidates for the head coaching position at Notre Dame.
At LSU, Mainieri will be reunited with pitcher Derik Olvey, who was 2-2 with a 5.59 ERA in 48 innings for the 2005 Irish. Olvey transferred to LSU and became the ace of the staff last season. He is rehabbing from recent Tommy John arm surgery.
"From my experience, he's a big pitching-and-defense guy,'' Olvey told the Advocate. "I don't know if that's the style of baseball he recruited for, being in the North, where the ball doesn't fly. This year they had a pretty good offensive club.''
Mainieri, who played for LSU as a freshman infielder and two more seasons at nearby University of New Orleans, will depart Notre Dame under circumstances similar to the man he replaced, Pat Murphy.
Murphy was 318-116-1 in seven seasons at Notre Dame before leaving for Arizona State, a school like LSU, where the national championship is the goal every season.
Arizona State, like LSU, has won five national championships. While Murphy has not won one yet at ASU, the Sun Devils have made it to the College World Series twice during his tenure, losing to USC in the 1998 championship game.
Tribune staff writer Eric Hansen also contributed to this story.
Last edited by a moderator:
Upvote
0
