The smoke has finally cleared for the LSU baseball program. After a 3 1/2 week search to find a successor for the departed Smoke Laval, athletic director Skip Bertman announced Paul Mainieri as the new head coach. Mainieri became the 25th head baseball coach in LSU history and agreed to a five-year contract. He spent the last 12 years as the head man at Notre Dame, where he compiled a record of 533-213-3. Mainieri led the Fighting Irish to six regular season Big East championships and the past five league tournament titles. In 2002 he guided the school to the College World Series for the first time since 1957. After Laval resigned on June 4, Mainieri’s name shot to the top of Bertman’s list of possible replacements, a list that also included SEC coaches Mike Bianco from Ole Miss and Jim Wells from Alabama. Bertman called Mainieri early in his search and he expressed interest in the position, but insisted Bertman contact other candidates before making a decision. “I told Skip, ‘Go back to those guys. Go see what they want to do. But if it doesn’t feel right, give me a call back. You know where I am,” Mainieri said. Bertman called back Friday. And the rest is now history. The final pool of candidates was narrowed to Mainieri and two other candidates who Bertman declined to name. He said Mainieri was the best fit because of his southern roots and his people skills. “The other two guys didn’t have that,” Bertman said. “This guy has that.” Mainieri’s collegiate coaching career began in 1983 at St. Thomas (Fla.) University, where he accumulated a record of 179-121-1. He then spent six seasons as head coach at the Air Force Academy before replacing Pat Murphy at Notre Dame in 1994. After much success with the Irish, Mainieri said taking the LSU job is almost like returning home. “I’ve had so many people say to me ‘Welcome home’ and boy that is exactly what it feels like,” he said. “I feel like I have one more challenge left in me and this is it.” Mainieri last called Baton Rouge home in 1976, where he lettered as a shortstop his freshman year at LSU. He then played two years at the University of New Orleans before graduating from Florida International University. Mainieri said the decision to leave Notre Dame was not only his, but his wife Karen’s as well. Karen is a former LSU cheerleader whom he met on the sidewalk outside Broussard Hall in 1975. “This was a family decision,” he said. “I did not come to this decision quickly and easily. We are very confident this is the right thing to do.” Mainieri not only leaves tremendous success in Indiana, but also leaves three of his four children. Nicholas Mainieri is a student assistant coach on the Irish squad, Alexandra will be a senior at Ball State University in the fall and Samantha has been accepted at Notre Dame for her sophomore year. “Coming down here is like sending three of my kids away all at the same time,” he said. Mainieri’s youngest son Thomas will move to Baton Rouge along with his parents. The first year of the Mainieri regime will also be the last year historic Alex Box Stadium will be open. The new stadium will open for the 2008 season and seat approximately 8,500 spectators, 1,000 more than the current venue. Mainieri said it’ll be tough to perform in the shadow of Bertman, who won five national championships as baseball coach, but that doesn’t bother him. “A lot of people might be afraid of that,” he said. “I’m not afraid of it. I embrace it.” That same shadow proved too large for Laval. Despite a record of 210-109-1 in five seasons, Bertman decided it was time for a change in leadership for the baseball program. Sophomore outfielder Jarred Bogany said he’s already noticed subtle differences between his old coach and his new one. “[Mainieri] cares about the players more than just winning the games,” he said. Bogany said his expectations are no different than anybody else’s. “We want to win games as much as possible, not like last year,” he said.
—–Contact Tyler Batiste at [email protected]