A Sea Of Red

Look for an announcement in the next few days that a respected SEC assistant and an armed forces assistant have joined the baseball staff. You'll be hard-pressed to find a better staff. Period.

Thanks for the tip...
...can't wait for the coach to get in town.

He's been doing what he does best...recruiting. He's back in the Burg today.

That stinks - I was hoping Tomlin would get the job!!

Who's going to feed the players:)

Let the hate responses fly in 3...2...1...











I was just kidding.

Coach K?

an armed forces assistant

Just finished checking the baseball coaches' web pages of Army, Navy, & the Air Force academy but didn't see anyone with USC or NC State connections; in other words, I "struck out." Maybe the "armed forces assistant" was a reference to The Citadel.

The armed forces reference was referring to one of the service academies, not the Citadel.

The other assistant planning to come from the SEC is now being courted by a BIG NAME, B12 program for the same role. It will be a major blessing if he stays with us.

Wish I could give more specifics, but my source won't give me the okay for that. But, we can rest easy knowing that Big Jim can recruit players...and coaches.

I can play the guessing game (and if I guess right...it is just me playing the "odds").

Coach was at NC State...one of his players was BILLY HILLIER...who transferred to UNCA when his dad, Bill, got the baseball job there...
...one of Billy's teammates at UNCA was JASON RONAI...
...who is one of the Asst Coaches at the USNA.

That might be a stretch...but "Ro" is a great student and teacher of the game...and I think would be a good fit here.

Feel free to join Fumble and me with our service academy guessing game. All you have to do is connect the dots between Coach Toman and one of these assistants.

Navy coaches: http://navysports.cstv.com/sports/m-bas ... l-mtt.html
Army coaches: http://www.goarmysports.com/SportSelect ... PSID=56253
Air Force coaches: http://goairforcefalcons.cstv.com/sport ... l-mtt.html

Fumblerooskies wrote:I can play the guessing game (and if I guess right...it is just me playing the "odds").

Coach was at NC State...one of his players was BILLY HILLIER...who transferred to UNCA when his dad, Bill, got the baseball job there...
...one of Billy's teammates at UNCA was JASON RONAI...
...who is one of the Asst Coaches at the USNA.

That might be a stretch...but "Ro" is a great student and teacher of the game...and I think would be a good fit here.

I take it he was there when you were?

SuperJon wrote:I take it he was there when you were?

Yes...he actually did a major project for his Psych degree on my son. I've also seen him coach (a couple of summer ago) and the week I was there...he was great with the players. Young guy (late 20's, maybe 30, now) with a lot of energy. He also played one year of D-I hoops at St. Peters before transferring to Asheville to play baseball.

Pitching Coach Mike Bell from Tennesee

Assistant Coach Ian ???? from Army

Judge, neither of those names is showing up on the Army or UT baseball web pages. Are they current or former asst. coaches?

I think Bell was the PC under Delmonico at UT.

im sure toman is bringing some top notch assistants in. let's all put our trust in him and im sure things will work out.

brief bio: (chached)


http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:gm ... cd=2&gl=us

Tennessee pitching coach and recruiting coordinator Mike Bell arrived on Rocky Top in August 2004 boasting an impressive resume`. And during his three seasons in Knoxville, he has further strengthened his reputation as one of the game's most promising up-and-coming young coaches.

All he did in his first year with the Vols in 2005 was oversee a staff that set a new school record for strikeouts in a season (568, which shattered the old mark by more than 20 Ks) and helped guide Tennessee to the NCAA College World Series.

Bell's pitching know-how particularly paid off for hurlers Luke Hochevar and James Adkins that year. Hochevar tied for the NCAA lead with 15 wins (which also tied him atop Tennessee's single-season list for victories), broke the school record for strikeouts in a season with 154, was named the SEC Pitcher of the Year and won the prestigious Roger Clemens National Pitcher of the Year Award. He was then selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers with the 40th overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft.

http://www.goarmysports.com/SportSelect ... PSID=56253

even their media guide lists only Sottolano, Hamburg, Schnabel, and O' Sullivan

http://www.nmnathletics.com//pdf5/65251 ... M_ID=11100

Isn't Liberty a Christian University?

I was at a tournament recently and met your new asst. coach - one thing to say - I hope you don't have a language rule, because every other word was F this and F that. I will never send my child to a school that hires people like that.

Are the new coaches Christians?

To be honest, foul language is not acceptable at LU. I'm sure any new coaches will have full understanding of that situation once they are on campus. I consider myself a Christian and I've been known to let a few things fly out of my mouth in the heat of the moment that I'm not proud of from time to time.

BTW welcome to the board.

"Frappin'" isn't technically a curse word.

Wonderin which new assistant coach louise is talking about. None has been named yet.

First Assistant on board

Toman Hires Schnabel as an Assistant

Lynchburg, Va. – Liberty Baseball Head Coach Jim Toman announced he has hired Nick Schnabel to his coaching staff as a full-time assistant coach.

“Nick Schnabel was highly recommended by everyone who knows him,” stated Toman. “He is a high-energy guy who had a tremendous career at East Carolina and is one of the top young up- and-coming coaches in the nation. He is a man of solid Christian morals and will be an asset to Liberty University and our baseball program.

“Nick will be the hitting and infield instructor,” continued Toman. “I am very excited he has decided to join the Liberty baseball family.”

A highly respected member of the collegiate baseball community, Schnabel comes to Liberty after two seasons as a full-time assistant coach at Army. During his time at West Point, he served as the Black Knights’ hitting instructor, while working with the team’s infielders and overseeing the club’s defensive alignment. Off the field, Schnabel focused on national recruiting for Army with a focus on the East Coast.

The Martinez, Calif., native began his coaching career in 2003 as a volunteer assistant at his alma mater, East Carolina, and a year later, was hired as an assistant coach at Chipola College in Marianna, Fla. At Chipola, he filled the roles of infield instructor, assistant hitting instructor and academic monitor. In the summer of 2005, Schnabel was named a full-time assistant by Army head coach Joe Sottolano.

A 2000 graduate of East Carolina, Schnabel lettered twice as the Pirates’ starting second baseman. In his two seasons at East Carolina, he helped the Pirates win two consecutive league championships and secure a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Regionals both of those seasons. In 1999, Schnabel garnered first-team Colonial Athletic Association honors and was selected the CAA’s Defensive Player of the Year. He began his collegiate career at Ohlone College in Freemont, Calif., where he was a first-team all-conference performer and preseason Junior College All-American.

After graduation, Schnabel spent four years in the Montreal Expos organization, playing on five levels of its farm system. He concluded his career as a member of the Double-A Eastern League Harrisburg Senators in 2003.

For those that don't know, ECU has a great baseball program. They've been a little down the last year or two, but when this guy was there they were one of the top programs in the country.

im sure JB likes this guy. he's an ECU alum.

New Flame Fife was right on target with his "armed forces" and "military academy" assistant coach prediction. I guess Barney is an insider afterall--I'm giving him credit where credit is due. Thanks, NF.