South Carolina has been one of the most successful college baseball programs in the country. The Gamecocks have failed to live up to expectations as of late, with their most recent College World Series appearance coming in 2012. USC athletic director Ray Tanner, who coached the program to six CWS appearances and two national titles during his run as head coach from 1997 to 2012, decided it was time for change and relieved Mark Kingston of his duties and named Monte Lee the team's interim head coach.
With the prestige of the South Carolina baseball program, Tanner should have no problem attracting a highly-touted coach to take over the team. According to South Carolina insiders, Tanner has hit the ground running and is going full speed ahead with his coaching search. If you love the Gamecocks, or just want to know who will be calling the shots for South Carolina in 2025, be sure to see what the proven team of insiders are saying at The Big Spur, the 247Sports affiliate that covers South Carolina.
J.C. Shurburtt, a fixture in the Gamecock market for two decades, is the Publisher of The Big Spur. The staff at The Big Spur is led by managing editor John Whittle, who first broke the story of Kingston being fired. Supporting writers include Alex Jones and Tony Morrell, and they bring decades of experience covering the Gamecocks.
From breaking stories and recruiting, to practice coverage and in-depth analysis, The Big Spur is your one-stop source for South Carolina sports. You'll get HD video interviews with the players and coaches, highlight videos of South Carolina recruits, the fastest and most knowledgeable reporting from practice, deep cover analysis, and access to the entire 247Sports network, including all of the SEC sites and the national recruiting sites. Their message board community also puts you in touch daily with thousands of South Carolina fans and other program insiders.
And right now, The Big Spur is offering 60% off annual subscriptions*, so now is the time to sign up. The team at The Big Spur already has a list out of 10 potential candidates and there are some surprising names on the list. Head to The Big Spur now to see them all.
Top South Carolina baseball coach candidates
One name the staff has identified as a potential candidate is Tennessee assistant head coach Josh Elander. He was an assistant at TCU in 2016 and an assistant at Arkansas in 2016 before joining Tennessee's staff in 2017. He works primarily with Tennessee's position players and has helped the Vols become one of the nation's top hitting teams in recent years.
Elander is also an ace recruiter who has helped Tennessee sign six top-15 recruiting classes since his arrival. "I've heard his name more from sources outside of the program than in it, but if Tanner ends up going the assistant route (at least assistant outside of the program), Elander makes more sense than anyone," Whittle said.
Another name on the list is ECU head coach Cliff Godwin. The 46-year-old has deep emotional ties to ECU (his alma mater), so he will be a hard sell, but insiders believe he can be swayed if the right position presents itself. He led the Pirates to an impressive 46-17 overall record this season, and is widely considered to be one of the top coaches in the country.
"But word that I have received in the last couple of weeks is that Godwin may be more open to leaving ECU if the right situation presents itself. Mike Bianco was on the cusp of being fired before leading his team on a magical run to the national championship in 2022, and he's back next year after missing the NCAA Tournament twice. With the restructuring of dollars due to the NCAA settlement, it is going to be more challenging now than before to be successful at ECU, and I believe Godwin knows that," insider John Whittle said. See more candidates at The Big Spur.
How to get insider South Carolina coaching staff search updates
The rest of the list includes eight other potential candidates, including some shocking names of head coaches at rival programs. You can only see who they are at The Big Spur.
Who are the top names in the South Carolina baseball coaching search, and what surprising big-name rival coaches could be on the move? Go to TheBigSpur.com to see their South Carolina coaching hot board and more, all from a team of reporters with decades of experience covering the Gamecocks, and find out.
And reminder, The Big Spur is offering 60% off an annual VIP membership as a coaching search special, so subscribe now before it's too late.
*Terms: This offer is only available for new members who sign up for an annual subscription to The Big Spur. After the first year, subscription will re-bill on an annual basis at the regular rate. 247Sports.com reserves the right to alter or cancel this promotion at any time. Please write support@247sports.com with any questions you may have.
