Former Wichita State coach Gene Stephenson belongs on the Mount Rushmore of college baseball, according to Baseball America writer Aaron Fitt.
Since coaches such as Skip Bertman, Ron Fraser, Augie Garrido and Rod Dedeaux aren’t available to replace Stephenson, WSU must find somebody else, somebody willing to build a resume at the program Stephenson built.
Athletic director Eric Sexton said the search is open to all, not just those with Shocker roots.
Whomever WSU selects, he must be willing to work with constant reminders of Stephenson’s success. Stephenson, fired on Tuesday, worked for 36 years to build a winning tradition and 7,851-seat Eck Stadium. Pitching coach Brent Kemnitz, who worked with Stephenson for 35 seasons, remains as a member of the coaching staff, a move Sexton believes will help the transition.
“It needs to be somebody that has unbelievable confidence, somebody that is not afraid of following Gene Stephenson,” Kemnitz said. “Somebody that sees what is in place and uses that to their benefit.”
The assets Stephenson, 67, built since taking over in 1977 didn’t disappear.
“They can be a perennial regional team,” Fitt said. “This is Wichita State. That name matters.”
The consensus is WSU offers a coach possibilities that match almost any school. But membership in the Missouri Valley Conference is a problem, because it makes building a lofty power ranking (RPI) difficult. Kansas weather needs no explanation. And high school talent in the state is limited by its small population and competition is fierce with two Big 12 schools.
Read more here:
http://www.kansas.com/2013/06/07/283715 ... rylink=cpy