I think this is a great hire by my undergrad alma mater. Not sure why Coach Googins wasn't pursued by more visible schools - his success at Xavier was tremendous in an outdated facility - the baseball facility at Cincinnati is top notch and so with the right coach I think they have a chance to get pretty good. Even hosted a PG National about 7 or 8 years ago.
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Good call justbb. Xavier was extremely competitive in the Regional and gave teams like Oklahoma all they could handle (more in the rematch) not to mention how well they played and how hard they competed against Louisville.
I wonder if too many people get so enamored with Power 5 that, for their son's, they presume "terrific coaching" without truly understanding what that means. While the move to your alma mater presents new challenges for Coach Googins and his staff, one can probably expect the additional resources will provide every opportunity to meet those challenges.
Do you know that he wasn't pursued by more visible schools? Just wondering.
MidAtlanticDad posted:Do you know that he wasn't pursued by more visible schools? Just wondering.
No I don't. Just assumed it. Never a good idea I suppose.
Sounds like a great hire.
Has anyone heard anything abut the Santa Clara opening? Coach O'Brien stepped down a few weeks ago. I'm sure they want to get someone in place soon, as it is prime recruiting season.
If there are things happening at SCU, they are keeping it very quiet.
SCU is a very tough challenge because expectations seem so high but are seemingly based on successes which occurred 30-40 years ago.
Tuition, room, board, etc at SCU is in the range of $65,000-$70,000. Any player getting 25% would still need to come up with about $45,000 in other aid or payment. Trying to meet those financial challenges and have a roster with the depth needed to compete, successfully, in the WCAC is something SCU has not been able to do for many years. SCU is not alone with those challenges in the WCAC. However, their past seems to suggest the school might place that responsibility on the head coach, even though he only is able to impact 11.7.
All very true IF Dad, but as you imply, all of the other WCC schools are also expensive private universities. Frankly, I get why Pacific is always at or near the bottom, (who wants to be in Stockton?) but I don't get what's wrong with Portland, and I really don't get what's the problem with SCU. Nice baseball facility. Beautiful campus. Good academics and outstanding record of placing grads into Silicon Valley jobs. Very close to SF -- but not too close. Seems to me it stacks up very well with schools like USD, St. Mary's, & Gonzaga and ought to be more successful in getting good players on the field. Hey, maybe it really is the coaching? Beats me.
On a related topic, it's surprising how little news there is about Stanford.
I could very well be wrong on most or all of this but here are some thoughts:
The WCC schools which are successful in baseball have more, or perhaps different, support beyond the 11.7 and the level of financial support is known at an earlier time than at a school like SCU. When the the last coaching transition from O'Brien to O'Brien occurred, a major obstacle at SCU was described as the fact that financial aid decisions beyond the 11.7 for baseball were not announced until late in the Spring of a potential recruits senior year in HS. As a result, players and parents were pretty much in the dark at NLI day about the financial obligations beyond what was committed through the NLI and $45,000 per year for 4 years is a big "uncertainty" for most families.
USD has a history of getting very top recruits. Some have reported that occurs because they focus their 11.7 on 9-12 players and look for other types of financial aid to fill in the roster for some depth.
With Gonzaga, I could only speculate. Doing that, I would not be surprised if the revenue from their highly successful basketball program does not lead to better (aka bigger) financial budgets for a program like baseball. That might also now be true at St. Marys and their new coaching staff coupled with the success of their basketball program. This budget option probably does not exist at schools like SCU, USF, UOP,and Portland each of which may be forced to allocate more $$$$ to basketball, which is the lifeblood of the WCC.
As to Stanford, I think there is much to question about the manner in which things have been done for the last 52 or so weeks.
And then there is Cal and the continued undercurrent of a committee recommending "cuts" to their programs. One recent report suggested the committee might be considering cuts which would take them to the NCAA minimum of 14 teams, all because football and their stadium is drowning them in about $22M in debt, per year.
Good insights, IFD, thanks.
JCG,
Just read this on a Stanford baseball site about their search and the SCU situation-attributed to Kendall Rogers:
Outside of the South Carolina coaching search, there’s no search in college baseball more anticipated than this one from one of the nation’s premier programs. Stanford is a unique place, and with that, comes a unique set of challenges when selecting a head coach.
So, what’s the very latest from the farm? Right now, the Cardinal is considering a few candidates as it nears the end of the selection process. Stanford alumnus and Minor League manager Ryan Garko is one of the more prominent names to remember, while the Cardinal also is taking a hard look at several college coaches.
Some names to watch as the search unfolds? TCU pitching coach Kirk Saarloos, California head coach and Stanford alum Dave Esquer, Michigan coach Erik Bakich, Gonzaga head coach Mark Machtolf, current pitching coach Rusty Filter and UCSB head coach Andrew Checketts.
Out of that group, keep close tabs on Saarloos and Bakich in particular. Saarloos is a California native and has spent his collegiate coaching career at two of the nation’s perennial powers in Cal State Fullerton and now, TCU. He’s an excellent recruiter and would bring an impressive pedigree to Stanford. Meanwhile, Bakich is a NorCal native, recruits California hard at Michigan and has had plenty of success with the Wolverines over the past few seasons.
Stanford is doing a very diligent search, so stay tuned as a decision could come soon.
The Broncos aren’t moving particularly fast with their coaching search despite parting ways with Dan O’Brien a couple of weeks ago, but there might be a reason for that. Stanford assistant Rusty Filter is in the mix for the position, while the same can be said for Oregon assistant Jay Uhlman. We will continue to keep tabs on the SCU opening, but sources suggest that interviews have yet to begin.
It amazes me that SCU doesn't recruit closer to home. Over the past four years -- rarely have they signed someone from the West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) -- which is one of the best overall leagues in Northern California. Never/rarely did I see SCU coaches at our school (or our rivals) over the past four years. Odd considering the talent overall in this league.
Also odd, Mam, considering the fact that there are a lot of families at those schools that can afford the SCU tuition. Fair number of east bay kids on their roster, though, and a few from the north bay.
Interesting info, IFD.
I can confirm from some 'inside sources' everything in that article infielddad - except that I don't think that Filter is a candidate at Stanford. He might be mentioned as a 'courtesy.' But I think they're not going to go there. All the rest is very accurate according to a very good source. Bakich played HS ball locally at Bellarmine Prep. He previously coached at Vanderbilt and has good experience with recruiting high academic kids. An issue with him could be cost of living in/near Palo Alto - things are pretty good for him and his wife in Ann Arbor.
I think at SCU its down to Filter and Uhlman.
Mam - the previous coaching staff recruited the WCAL very hard and had similar level of success. A BIG issue at SCU is what infielddad referred too with the non-baseball money. I have heard this from a wide range of people very familiar with that program. Unlike Stanford, for example, they are stuck without much help from the non-athletic money there - it just doesn't happen in time or at all. That truly can limit the staff to 11.7 or thereabouts.
JBB and Infielddad,
I don't know how the heck you two get all the inside scoop on so many things but this is just another really cool aspect of this site. Thanks for sharing.
justbaseball posted:I think this is a great hire by my undergrad alma mater. Not sure why Coach Googins wasn't pursued by more visible schools - his success at Xavier was tremendous in an outdated facility - the baseball facility at Cincinnati is top notch and so with the right coach I think they have a chance to get pretty good. Even hosted a PG National about 7 or 8 years ago.
And Googins is an Ohio Wesleyan Grad. That makes Him and Corbin that I am aware of, plus Mott at OWU. I am always happy to see Coach progress.
Go Bishops.
Ok, I will step down off the Soapbox now.
Re: Stanford
From The Sunday Globe baseball notes ...
Ruben Amaro Jr., first base coach, Red Sox — The former Phillies GM is gaining alumni and academic support for the vacant coaching job at Stanford, his alma mater. There’s a long list of other candidates, including A’s first base coach Mike Aldrete, but Amaro’s name is starting to resonate.
RJM - I know who at least one of the very highest rollers wants - but I don't think it will happen and so I won't put his name here.
