Possible candidates to replace Monte Lee as head baseball coach at Clemson
Clemson is on the hunt for a new baseball coach.
The Tigers fired Monte Lee on Tuesday after seven years with the program. Athletic director Graham Neff and the Clemson administration made the change after Lee’s Tigers missed the NCAA tournament for the second straight season.
Here’s a look at possible candidates to replace him:
Clemson coaching search: The top names
Dan McDonnell — Head coach, Louisville
If you’re the decision-makers at Clemson, Dan McDonnell should be options Nos. 1, 2 and 3.
McDonnell has built a monster at Louisville over his 16 seasons as head coach. He’s won more than 70% of his 953 games in charge. The Cardinals have also reached the College World Series five times during his tenure and only missed the NCAA tournament once, not including the COVID-19-shortened 2020 campaign.
For context, Louisville had made the NCAAs exactly once from the time the program was started in 1909 until McDonnell took over.
As for the fit at Clemson — McDonnell, a New York native, was on The Citadel’s 1990 College World Series team. He later got his start in coaching as an assistant for legendary Bulldogs head coach Chal Port between 1993 and 2000 and later worked for Mike Bianco at Ole Miss.
Louisville is in the process of hiring a new athletic director, but there’s been rumored friction between McDonnell and his administration’s commitment to baseball in recent years.
That alone might not be enough to drive him out of town, but a return to a familiar state and a program with as many resources as any program in the sport could be enticing.
Link Jarrett — Head coach, Notre Dame
If McDonnell stays at Louisville, Link Jarrett would still be an absolute home run for Clemson.
Don’t let Notre Dame’s geography fool you. Jarrett is a Southeast guy and makes ample sense at Clemson.
Jarrett has spent almost the entirety of his career in this part of the country. Following his playing career under legendary Florida State head coach Mike Martin between 1991 and 1994 and a five-year minor league spell, he worked as the head coach at UNC-Greensboro and as an assistant at Mercer, East Carolina and Auburn, among other stops.
Notre Dame has had its moments as a program, but Jarrett has pretty clearly elevated the Irish to another rung in short order. He’s won just under 74% of his games since arriving in 2019, narrowly lost a Super Regional to eventual national champion Mississippi State last year and should again have a chance to host a regional this season.
It’s hard to put those kinds of expectations on Jarrett, but he’s one of the fastest-rising coaches in America and would be a knockout hire if the Clemson administration could pull it off.
Kevin O’Sullivan — Head coach, Florida
The 15-year head coach of the Gators, Kevin O’Sullivan is one of the most highly respected and sought-after coaches in college baseball, and his name came up often during LSU’s coaching search last offseason. During that time O’Sullivan released a statement through the university saying, “This is where I want to be, and I do not have interest in the head coach openings at other schools.”
However, O’Sullivan has extensive ties to the Tigers as he coached for nine seasons under former head coach Jack Leggett from 1999-2007. During that time he served as pitching coach, recruiting coordinator and associate head coach before he took the head coaching job at Florida in 2008.
Given that history, Clemson will almost certainly make a phone call, but will the Tigers be able to pry O’Sullivan from Gainesville when LSU was unable to accomplish the feat just last offseason?
O’Sullivan’s resume speaks for itself: He’s won the SEC regular season title four times, he’s reached the College World Series seven times and he won the 2017 national title.
The next best options for Clemson
Josh Holliday — Head coach, Oklahoma State
Josh Holliday has quickly made his alma mater an annual player in the Big 12.
He’s made the NCAA tournament every single year since taking over as head coach in 2013, reached the College World Series in 2016 and added a pair of super regional appearances in 2014 and 2019. Holliday also has the No. 9 team in college baseball this year, per D1Baseball, and should be in line to host a regional this year, too.
The older brother of longtime MLB standout Matt Holliday, Josh has relevant regional experience at N.C. State, Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt that would lend itself well to the Clemson job.
If things got past Jarrett and McDonnell, Holliday feels like a good fit given his track record and Power Five head coaching experience.
Scott Jackson — Head coach, Liberty
Scott Jackson is the least-experienced head coach on this list, but his name is quickly rising in college baseball circles.
Jackson, a Virginia native who played his college ball at Campbell, has spent the bulk of his coaching career in and around South Carolina. He got his start as an assistant at Wofford before moving onto other Division I jobs at Campbell, UNC-Wilmington, Liberty and North Carolina — where he was on staff for the Tar Heels’ runs to the 2009, 2011 and 2013 College World Series.
He’s only been the head coach at Liberty for five seasons, but Jackson has the Flames in their third consecutive NCAA regional (not including 2020).
Longshots
Chad Holbrook — Head coach, College of Charleston
This would be fun, wouldn’t it?
Clemson fans should be familiar with Chad Holbrook from his time with rival South Carolina, where Holbrook coach under Ray Tanner during USC’s College World Series runs and where he served as head coach from 2012-17.
Holbrook resigned from USC after a challenging 2017 season but has seemingly found his rhythm at the College of Charleston, where he won Colonial Athletic Association coach of the year this season after leading the Cougars to a 37-19 record. However, much like Clemson, the Cougars missed the cut for the NCAA tournament. Holbrook seems like an unlikely choice, but he certainly has the recruiting chops and familiarity with the region.
Cliff Godwin — Head coach, East Carolina
Cliff Godwin’s name comes up just about every year there’s a marquee baseball job open.
The former Ole Miss, LSU, Vanderbilt and Notre Dame assistant has said he’s determined to get East Carolina to Omaha. (He’s reached a super regional three times since taking over in 2015.)
If he’d leave his alma mater, Godwin would be a great hire on paper. It’s just not altogether clear whether he wants another job.
Chris Lemonis — Head coach, Mississippi State
Should McDonnell not be interested, how about his former protegé Chris Lemonis?
Lemonis was raised in the Myrtle Beach area and played and worked as an assistant at The Citadel. His eldest daughter is also a South Carolina grad and he spends time in Charleston during the offseasons.
That said, the timing here feels all wrong.
It’s hard to imagine Lemonis leaving a top-10 job at Mississippi State for Clemson only one year removed from winning a national title.
Rob Woodard — Head coach, Charlotte
Rob Woodard is a regional guy who could get an interview, but seems unlikely to land the job.
The all-time winningest pitcher in UNC history, Woodard, 37, worked as an assistant for the Tar Heels in two different stints along with stops at UNC-Wilmington and Virginia Tech.
He’s only been the head coach for parts of three seasons, but he got the 49ers to the NCAA Tournament last season and could do so again this year.
This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 5:35 PM with the headline "Possible candidates to replace Monte Lee as head baseball coach at Clemson."
