Coastal Carolina coach Kevin Schnall has been a popular name mentioned for the South Carolina baseball coaching job, and he addressed rumors before the Chanticleers play in the NCAA Tournament.
“Listen, I know that there are a lot of rumors out there but I haven’t spoken to the University of South Carolina regarding its baseball head coaching position,” Schnall said in an interview with SportsTalkSC on May 26. “All of our focus right now is 100% on Coastal.”
Coastal Carolina (37-21) is the No. 2 seed in the Tallahassee regional and will face 3-seed Northern Illinois (35-17) at 8 p.m. on May 29.
Schnall added his agent talked to a South Carolina search firm but “has got very little information.”
“South Carolina is an elite program,” Schnall said. “It is a job that a lot of coaches will be very interested in because of the commitment and rich tradition of that program.”
South Carolina is looking for a new coach after Paul Mainieri departed midseason in his second year and interim coach Monte Lee was fired.
Schnall, who is in his second season as Coastal Carolina’s coach, is a coveted candidate. He led the Chanticleers to a runner-up finish in the College World Series in 2025 and has posted a 93-34 record.
Schnall said he could see himself retiring at Coastal Carolina, where he played catcher from 1995-99 and served as an assistant from 2001-12 and 2016-24 before getting promoted to head coach.
He added the success he has had will always cause coaching rumors to arise.
“In the last two-and-a-half decades, we’ve got the fifth-best winning percentage, the sixth-most wins in the entire country,” Schnall said. “In the last decade, we’ve got the most wins in South Carolina. We have been to Omaha twice, we won a national championship. Last year, we were in the national championship finals.
“It is going to happen every single year. I am very fortunate to be a part of this successful program. Coach (Gary) Gilmore laid this foundation, and we’re continuing to build upon that foundation. At the end of the day, success is why people are interested. Ultimately, it is going to happen every single year if we continue to be successful.”
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at DCarter@usatodayco.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Coastal Carolina coach Kevin Schnall addresses South Carolina rumors
About the Author
