Five Thoughts On Mississippi State Baseball Hiring Chris Lemonis

Omaha, NE - JUNE 29: Game three of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arizona Wildcats and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers is under a weather delay on June 29, 2016 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Omaha, NE - JUNE 29: Game three of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arizona Wildcats and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers is under a weather delay on June 29, 2016 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
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OMAHA, NE – JUNE 25: The UCLA Bruins take infield practice before playing the Mississippi State Bulldogs during game two of the College World Series Finals on June 25, 2013 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
OMAHA, NE – JUNE 25: The UCLA Bruins take infield practice before playing the Mississippi State Bulldogs during game two of the College World Series Finals on June 25, 2013 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Mississippi State baseball officially has a new head coach

We finally know who the new head coach of the Mississippi State baseball team. Last night, D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers reported that the Bulldogs were set to hire Indiana’s Chris Lemonis to lead the baseball team.

That set off a multitude of mixed reactions by many Mississippi State fans.

Although Chris Lemonis has a pretty good resume, it’s a fairly short one. Yes, he’s been a great assistant coach under Dan McDonnell before and had success at Indiana, a school not known for college baseball success. But, MSU fans wanted more than just that.

Many fans were hopeful and expected John Cohen to hire Dan McDonnell away from Louisville. They weren’t looking for one of his former assistants. They wanted McDonnell himself. It’s hard for some to be excited about this hire, despite the fact that it’s a good one, simply because of high expectations.

And those high expectations, whether they’re reasonable or unreasonable, shouldn’t diminish exactly what this hire is and how good it might be. John Cohen just selected the next head coach of Mississippi State baseball. Chris Lemonis will be leading Mississippi State forward. Cohen would not have made this particular hire without weighing and considering everything about it.