Helton Joining Baseball Staff

He seems overqualified for UT then

 

Sounds like Currie met with him back during the SEC Tournament per some rumors. Seems like they have been slow playing Ash Lawson a bit while seeing how the Holbrook situation unfolded. I would rather have Lawson bc of his recruiting ties and background, but I think there are some young Assistants that would be better long term.

Lawson, for those who don't remember, was on Raleighs staff for approx the lat 6 months or so of his tenure. He went out and landed some top tier kids, but Raleigh got canned and I believe several of them went in the draft.

 

Whomever the worst candidate is, that's who we will likely get.

 

ETSU job about to be open. Only way I want Lawson is if ETSU's eventual front runner came with him. He wouldn't with Bucs job open.

Lawson is front runner from all I've heard, though.

 

Whats your take on Lawson?

 

Excellent at communicating. Knows the game well and has built some success with a program at the NAIA level. Has strong ties to the pro game and is well respected in the southeast as far as eye for talent.

I'm concerned about how well he can translate that to SEC baseball in a program that needs a serious shot in the arm. What he built at TN Wesleyan was good and has been sustained through time. But getting kids admitted to TN Wesleyan compared to UT is light years difference.

If he can bring Danny Clark from the Rangers with him. I say hire him now. If he can't, and if ETSU goes after Danny as they should, then I'm more hesitant.

 

Tony Vitello, assistant coach at Arkansas is the man.

 

Good hire. Can potentially be a great hire.

 

Please keep Helton.

 

MIZZOU fans seem to think they royally screwed up by not hiring him last year and that he'll do well.

 

Seems he has a good eye for talent and has coached some solid major league guys.

Is this a 100% Currie hire or did this guy have a push from someone around the program?

 

Disappointed it's not Burke but sounds like a more solid hire than we have made in the past.

 

No one close to the program pushed him.

 

Interesting. So Currie did it live.

 

This is Currie's hire.

I'll say this... I'm more impressed he could keep this under wraps the way he did. I've spoken to some people very close to the UT basebal scene and no one saw this coming.

 

No way Tennessee could hire any one with out a search firm

 

Dave Hart is completely stymied by this.

 

Currie ran a smokescreen in the VQ/24-7/beat writers.... committee was talking to Lawson, MD coach, Burke, Mazey, etc... Holbrook was dangled last night, and all the while, Currie makes what seems to be a potentially promising hire that nobody had on their short list.

 

If Holbrook was a serious candidate we should have just shut the program down instead.

 

And Ash was a serious candidate.