Begin the Erstad Era

knapplc

knapplc

Active member
I find this a little odd. Not that I don't trust Erstad - I have no reason not to - but I would think that, according to statements about the buzz around the job opening, that we would have hired a coach with more bona fides than Erstad.

Erstad to be named NU baseball coach
Make way for the former Husker All-American, Major League All-Star and World Series champion.

The Journal Star has learned from two sources close to Tom Osborne's search to find Nebraska a new baseball coach that Darin Erstad will be introduced at a 3:30 p.m. news conference Thursday.
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If this says anything it might be insight into who possibly could replace TO as AD. Paul Meyers and DE are very tight both having played Baseball at Nebraska and PM was the one who scored the big check from DE for the football upgrades. At the very least it tells me that TO may have listened to him.

 
That's a good observation, da skers.

I'm also hearing that Erstad has approached Bolt to be on the staff. He would at least provide some more coaching experience.

 
This also makes this section of Friday's article by McKeever seem like more than idle speculation:

On Tuesday, Osborne said he would like to see Erstad remain with the program, and he pretty much left it up to him to decide the level to which he'd like to be involved.
Osborne is receiving help in his search (he declined Friday to say whether that meant Nebraska is using a firm like it did before Bo Pelini was hired as football coach), but he is doing most of the task himself.

Would it be preposterous, then, to think Erstad could wind up making the jump from volunteer coach to being the one in charge?
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LINK

 
Looks like McKeever's scoop has the Athletic Department making their release ahead of schedule. Here's the official release from Huskers.com:

Erstad Named Nebraska Head Baseball Coach

Nebraska Athletic Director Tom Osborne has announced that Darin Erstad has been hired as the head coach of the Husker baseball program.

"Darin is very passionate about Nebraska and especially our baseball program," Osborne said. "Nobody is going to work harder than Darin. He showed that both here at Nebraska and in Major League Baseball, and that will be the same as our head coach."

Erstad, a two-time Major League All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1995 MLB Draft and spent 14 years in the majors, before retiring following the 2009 season. A two-sport standout at Nebraska, Erstad was a first-team All-American and Big Eight Co-Player of the Year in his final season as a Husker in 1995.

"It is a great honor to be the new head coach of the Nebraska baseball program," Erstad said. "My family and I believe strongly in what the University stands for, and I am excited to have this opportunity to help influence kids' lives in a positive way and help them turn into young men. I am committed to helping them grow as people."

Nebraska conducted a thorough search that included interviews with head and assistant coaches from around the country. Osborne said he was impressed by the interest in the job, and the reputation of Nebraska baseball on a national level.

"Coaches from major conferences in all parts of the country were interested in this job," Osborne said. "They know we have first-class facilities and a strong commitment to having a successful baseball program."
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To be honest....most people I'm talking to are pretty surprised by this hire. I cant remember if it was the LJS that stated it was something decided in the last 24 hours or if it was one of the messages flying back and fourth between guys in the last two hours but it really has raised a lot of eyebrows. I know a lot of guys standing there scratching there heads not certain if it was a good hire or not. The guy is obviously a good baseball coach...and knows Nebraska but as one friend said...this on the surface would be like hiring Garrison to replace Bo Pelini if he left. Not knowing who TO talked with I don't know if DE was simply that highly regarded as a can't miss or if this is giving up a little bit on baseball and being happy with a local hero's name to put butts in the seats.

Time will tell.

 
IMO, I think Erstad will be a great hire. He will change the culture of this team. They will be more aggressive on the field. Coaches will be young and hungry and will be empowered to do their job. Look for pitching coach to come from the West Coast.

 
da skers said:
To be honest....most people I'm talking to are pretty surprised by this hire. I cant remember if it was the LJS that stated it was something decided in the last 24 hours or if it was one of the messages flying back and fourth between guys in the last two hours but it really has raised a lot of eyebrows. I know a lot of guys standing there scratching there heads not certain if it was a good hire or not. The guy is obviously a good baseball coach...and knows Nebraska but as one friend said...this on the surface would be like hiring Garrison to replace Bo Pelini if he left. Not knowing who TO talked with I don't know if DE was simply that highly regarded as a can't miss or if this is giving up a little bit on baseball and being happy with a local hero's name to put butts in the seats.

Time will tell.
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It was the LJS that said this all went down in the last 24 hours. I don't know if TO was just selling the program when he said he'd had a lot of interest in the job or not, but it seems pretty obvious that this was supposed to take about a week, then everything just popped up in the last 24 hours.

Here's TO...

 
Tom says again he's surprised at how much interest there was in this job. A great many applicants from all around the country, who all commented on how great our facilities are.

 
Interviewed six folks, some assistants, some head coaches. Darrin was the first person TO interviewed. Showed a great deal of wisdom because he said he should talk to his wife before asking for the job. Tom being a jokester.

 
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