STARKVILLE — Mississippi State’s hit king and current Tampa Bay Rays outfielder, Jake Mangum, was unloading groceries when The Dispatch reached him via phone on Monday.
But, like always, he was ready to talk baseball, especially after the big news that the Bulldogs hired Brian O’Connor as the program’s next head coach.
“I’m excited, it’s a good hire. I haven’t met him, I don’t know too much about him, I just know he’s won a bunch of ball games.”
Mangum has already talked with Rays teammate Matt Thaiss, who was a member of the 2015 national championship team at Virginia, and is sold on the character of O’Connor and his fit for leading the Bulldogs.
“He’s got a proven track record. I have a teammate (Thaiss) who spoke wonders about him, and told me about how great a coach he is. To have someone to play for him let me know he’s a great guy, that makes me excited about his leadership at our program.”
The news was received with plenty of excitement from fans on social media, and former MSU players in the Starkville community echoed that excitement shared by Mangum and the Bulldog faithful.
O’Connor brings a resume to Starkville that speaks for itself. With more than 900 career wins and seven trips to Omaha, he checks the boxes for what State fans expect of their baseball program, but his continued success in the NIL and transfer portal era is another big plus, according to former players.
‘The Dude speaks for itself’
The consensus was that the Bulldogs have the facilities and support to attract the best of the best, and that still goes a long way in the new age of college sports.
“The Dude speaks for itself, it stands on its own merits,” former player and Renasant Bank vice president in Starkville, Brad Jones, said. “We have the top however-many attendance records. I’d think, if I were a coach outside the SEC, and had the opportunity to coach here and at the Carnegie Hall of college baseball, it’s hard for me to believe that coaches of Coach O’Connor’s caliber wouldn’t jump at the opportunity.”
“He had a good setup, but it speaks to the resources and capabilities you have here,” former pitcher and Starkville native Cole Gordon said. “What he was able to do at Virginia is incredible, and there’s even more possibility that he can do here.”
One major point raised by several former Bulldogs is the new reality of NIL money and the transfer portal in college sports. One only needs to look at the number of Cavaliers who entered the portal on Monday to see the impact a coach can have. From the players’ perspective, finding a program that is willing to support a top-level baseball program is a major boost in attracting the best coaching talent.
“I think that’s the only way you go and get a top guy like that,” Gordon added. “I think he understands where college baseball is, where the landscape is going, and I think he knows that in order to be successful, he needs to have an administration that is backing him. For him to leave the situation he was in, I think he knows how invested the administration is, the fanbase is, and everyone in baseball to be successful in the new era.”
MSU’s winningest coach, Ron Polk, now a special assistant to the AD at State, expressed his excitement as well. Though he said he regrets the timing of the hire with regard to the current coaching staff, he is ready to get to know O’Connor better after watching and admiring his work from afar.
“I think this is a good opportunity for Brian to change his scene a little bit from Virginia to the Southeastern Conference,” Polk said. “He’s been an ACC guy forever, and I’m looking forward to being in a position to work with him. It won’t be on an everyday basis, but I’m around the team a lot.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
