When the opportunity to become a coach on the LSU men’s golf team presented itself, Andrew Danna knew it was one that he simply couldn’t pass up.
When it was announced that former men’s assistant Garrett Runion would become the head coach of the women’s golf team, Director of Golf Chuck Winstead had to find a new assistant. After interviewing Danna, Winstead thought he was the perfect fit.
“Andrew’s a Baton Rouge-native, had a lot of success at the Division II level and is a great recruiter. I think he’s doing a great job so far this season,” Winstead said.
One of Danna’s favorite childhood memories was going to Alex Box Stadium and seeing LSU greats like Eddy Furniss and Brandon Larson. When he got the call, words couldn’t describe the emotions he felt.
“I grew up here. I didn’t go to LSU but I’ve been a fan my whole life, and to have this opportunity, it means so much to me,” Danna said.
Danna got his start coaching in 2011 at Georgia Southwestern State University, a Division II school with about 3,000 students. Danna quickly turned the program around, having three student-athletes named All-Americans and winning the Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year.
The success led Danna to another Division II school: Lynn University in Florida. In his six years there, Danna’s teams continually made runs in the Division II national championship, winning in 2018, earning three runner-up finishes and a third place finish, as well.
Along with the team’s success in national championships, Danna also received quite a few accolades himself, winning the 2018 NCAA Division II Dave Williams National Coach of the Year, along with the 2015 and 2016 Sunshine State Coach of the Year.
“My time at Georgia Southwestern was where I really learned the ropes, recruiting, how to coach. And then when I got to Lynn, I felt like I had really come in to my own as a golf coach,” Danna said. “We had a lot of success, and I’m really proud of those teams.”
One of the major points that Danna expressed when talking about coaching at the Division II level is that while resources may be limited, the level of competition does not suffer.
“If you take the top teams in Division II, and put them up against some of the lower level Division I teams, there really isn’t a big difference as far as talent goes … there were guys at Lynn that I believe will play on the Web.com Tour and the PGA Tour,” Danna said.
Coaching styles can be very different in golf, and Danna takes the approach that he is there to not only coach, but also to mentor the players. He doesn’t believe in discouraging players, but instead trying to find the reason why they might be struggling.
“When you hit a bad shot, the last thing you want to hear is, ‘Hey man, that was terrible shot. What are you doing,’ Danna said. That’s not constructive, I try to make sure that everything I do pushes the guys to be better but also encourages them at the same time.”