HEAD COACH KEVIN SCHNALL
In his first year at the helm of the Chanticleers' program, Schnall led Coastal Carolina to a nation-leading and school record 56 wins, a Sun Belt Conference Championship, Sun Belt Tournament Championship, Conway Regional Championship, Auburn Super Regional Championship and a 3-0 run in Omaha to the Men's College World Series Championship Final. Over the last quarter of the season, Coastal posted a 26-game winning streak, the fourth-longest winning streak in DI in the last five years.
Schnall is believed to be the fourth head coach to lead his team to the MCWS in his first year as a college head coach, joining Louisville's Dan McDonnell (2007), Florida State's Mike Martin (1980) and Texas' Cliff Gustafson (1968), and last Friday's victory over Louisville made him the only one of those four to win his Omaha debut. That would make Schnall the only first-year head coach to ever win his first eight NCAA Tournament games. His 56 wins this season were the most in Division I history by a rookie head coach. Only CSUN's Mike Batesole (52 wins in 1996) and Florida State's Mike Martin (51 wins in 1980) also won 50 or more.
He was named Baseball America's College Coach of the Year, ABCA/ATEC Atlantic Region Coach of the Year, Perfect Game Coach of the Year and Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year.