A battle down memory lane: Clemson officemates compete in Super Regional (2024)

CLEMSON— When Erik Bakich was introduced as Clemson's head coach in June 2022, he recalled the men he shared an office with as a 24-year-old volunteer assistant for the Tigers.

There was Clemson hitting coach and recruiting coordinator Tim Corbin, his future boss at Vanderbilt, who shaped Bakich's relentlessness as a recruiter and his overarching philosophy of developing athletes both physically and mentally.

There was Clemson pitching coach Kevin O'Sullivan, destined to be a title-winning coach at Florida, who was known for his competitive fire.

That year in 2002, the Tigers made the College World Series.

"To be surrounded by (head) coach (Jack) Leggett, Coach Corbin, Coach O'Sullivan and that team," Bakich said, "it's like, oh, yeah, we'll just win 54 games and be No. 1 in the country and go to Omaha. That's just how you do it."

Two decades later, Bakich has made it look nearly that easy, all while taking a competitive stroll down memory lane.

Clemson, regional hosts for a second year in a row, welcomed Vandy to Doug Kingsmore Stadium last week. But Bakich sidestepped Corbin because the Commodoresdropped consecutive games to Coastal Carolina and High Point.

But now it's O'Sullivan making a trip to Clemson for Super Regionals.Florida made the NCAA tournament despite a 28-27 record, including a one-and-done in the SEC tournament against Vandy.

In the NCAA tourney, O'Sullivan's team has recaptured his trademark competitiveness, falling to regional host Oklahoma State but then beating Nebraska to rematch with the Cowboys and beat them twice.

Bakich, who is trying to get Clemson to Omaha for the first time since 2010, will have Jack Leggett sitting beside him in the Tigers' dugout. He will have "Sully" and his Gators in the visitors dugout.

Just like in the regional round with Corbin, it's doubtful Bakich will want to engagein much nostalgia. He wants the focus to be on his players.

But there have been an eerie number of callbacks this postseason. For instance, the most valuable player of the Clemson regional was shortstop Jacob Hinderleider, who was 5-of-5 from the plate in one of the Tigers' wins.

The last Tiger with five hits in a postseason game: Shortstop Khalil Greene in 2002, the year Bakich, O'Sullivan, and Corbin were on staff together.

That staff was instrumental in shaping Bakich's career. He came to Clemson because his coach at East Carolina, Keith LeClair, played for Jack Leggett at Western Carolina. He only spent one year with the Tigers because he became Corbin's lead assistant at Vandy from 2003-09.

In 2002, Bakich had the youthful enthusiasm to commit to working the same schedule as Corbin, which meant they were often going from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

"I don't have any hobbies anyway," Bakich admitted at his introductory press conference at Clemson. "I didn't have much of a life, to be honest with you."

The 24-year-old volunteer assistant lived in a $200-a-month apartment, with no air conditioning and no cable. Because of the latter, Bakich spent ample time in a nearby movie theater for $2 a show. But after work, the coaching staff could often be found at Peppino's Pizzeria down the street.

LeClair, who later died at age 40 from ALS, was Bakich's base of inspiration because of the confidence he instilled in teams, making players believe they were "10-feet tall and bulletproof," as Bakich put it.

But his model for hands-on coaching was Leggett, always involved in a drill, whether it was base-running, relay throws, or rundowns. Bakich has been known to mix it up with his players in practice, or in the weight room, or joining them in hopping the right-field wall to celebrate a regional title as he did last weekend.

It was hard for Bakich not to adopt Corbin's detail-oriented approach as a coach and recruiter. They taught players exactly how to stand for the national anthem at Vandy, a drill the Tigers follow precisely.

O'Sullivan was known for his intensity. He helped 29 pitchers get drafted from 1999-2007, including five in his final year. O'Sullivan coached a trio of first-rounders in Mike Paradis, Tyler Lumsden, and Daniel Moskos.

"You've got to be the right person to be able to handle (his intensity)," one of O'Sullivan's proteges, ex-Pirates pitcherSteven Jackson, told The Post and Courier in 2017, "but Sully would give you everything he had if you were willing to put the work in."

Everyone on that 2002 staff put the work in. Bakich recalls being out in Clemson's batting cages with first baseman Michael Johnson until 2 a.m.

From that foundation, Leggett's coaching tree blossomed. Corbin has been to five College World Series and won two of them. O'Sullivan has made eight CWS appearances with the Gators between 2010-2023.

Clemson hasn't been to Omaha since O'Sullivan's first year in 2010, which was Bakich's first year as a head coach at Maryland.

Within the decade, Bakich led Michigan to the final series of the CWS.

Against Vandy, of course.

In just two years at Clemson— a program that had missed the NCAA tournament in back-to-back years before his arrival — Bakich has had the Tigers hosting regionals and now a Super Regional.

Against Florida, of course.

When he arrived at Clemson, Bakich couldn't help but recall sharing that office with Corbin and O'Sullivan. Now, they are competing at the top of the sport.

"You want to talk about accelerating the learning curve? That was it," Bakich said. "I've only ever been a part of one coaching tree, and that's the Jack Leggett coaching tree, and I'm very proud to be a part of that."