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LSU baseball coaching search: 3 potential candidates to succeed Paul Mainieri

By Ethan Lee

Jun 8, 2019; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Mike Bianco (5) talks with his players while making a pitching change during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Baum-Walker Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 8, 2019; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Mike Bianco (5) talks with his players while making a pitching change during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Baum-Walker Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports /
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The LSU baseball coaching search is narrowing down its potential candidates to succeed the legendary Paul Mainieri and the options are intriguing.

LSU, fresh off of a humbling loss to the Tennessee Volunteers in the Knoxville Super Regional which eliminated the Tigers from the 2021 NCAA Baseball Tournament, has a difficult task up ahead of it.

The LSU Tigers are having to replace a legend as Paul Mainieri announced in late May that he intended to retire at the end of this season. Now, a multitude of names has popped up as possible replacements for the head coaching vacancy.

A few different SEC coaches have seen their names floated around as the search has gone on. It seems like just about every good coach in the country is a candidate for this gig, which may not be an exaggeration.

LSU is one of the best college baseball jobs in the country.

Tennessee’s Tony Vitello would be a great hire, but that might just be wishful thinking on the part of fans at this point

As the LSU Tigers try to narrow down their search, the coach who just eliminated them from the 2021 NCAA Baseball Tournament would be a phenomenal option. Fans and players alike have called for the Tigers to pursue the possibility of hiring Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello.

Chris Reid, a former infielder for LSU, said Vitello would be his top choice to fill the head coaching vacancy left behind by Mainieri’s retirement. Reid ranked Vitello above Louisville head coach Dan McDonnell and Mississippi State assistant coach Jake Gautreau.

Unfortunately for LSU baseball fans, Vitello may be staying in Knoxville for a little while longer. According to D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers, LSU has been looking around at other options in their search.

At one point, Vitello may have been a serious contender for the head coaching gig, but that may not be the case anymore. But, that doesn’t mean LSU can’t still get a great coach.

There are several options still out there for the Tigers.

Mike Bianco and Cliff Godwin would be great options for the LSU Tigers

Ole Miss’ Mike Bianco’s name has come up consistently in reports about LSU’s coaching search. Bianco, a former LSU player himself and a successful head coach, would be a fascinating option for the Tigers.

Bianco helped guide the Rebels to Omaha in 2014 and has taken Ole Miss to several Super Regionals, most recently the Tucson Super Regional where the Rebels fell in three games to Arizona.

He’s been with Ole Miss for a couple of decades now and has made it to postseason play in 16 of those seasons. During that timeframe, Bianco has won 767 games.

East Carolina’s Cliff Godwin is also familiar with Baton Rouge. From 2006-2008, Godwin was an assistant coach for the Tigers. He then went on to UCF, made his way to Bianco’s staff at Ole Miss, and is now coaching his alma mater, the ECU Pirates.

Godwin has been at ECU since 2015 and his teams have won at least 40 games on four different occasions. The Pirates have made it to two different Super Regionals over the past two seasons (2019 and 2021) and are on the rise with Godwin.

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