(07-05-2017 10:13 PM)BucBaseball20 Wrote: I've said all along that I hope we get a young, up and coming assistant.
My only pause here is that it leaked out that we wanted to hire Clark.....and then we couldn't get it done.
It looks like you will probably be getting your wish. As a matter of fact there are 2 being interviewed(one today and one next week) that contacted Danny out of respect and asked if he had pulled out because they felt the job was his. As with any assistant they could or could not pan out. If not we will probably be looking for anther coach in 3-4 years, but also if they do we may also be looking AGAIN in a few years, as an "up and comer" may and probably would be looking at the ETSU opening as a stepping stone. That wouldn't have been the case with Clark.
Danny Clark IS proven at both the Pro AND College level. His college resume includes time as both an assistant at D1 (ETSU) JUCO (Brevard) and head coach NAIA (Milligan). He recruited some great players to one of the toughest academic schools imaginable (Milligan College) and was very successful while there with many of those being head 2 head recruiting battles vs other D1 colleges. Many of these have went on to become some of the finest and most successful business men and leaders in the area (Doctors, Surgeons, Attorneys, Teachers, Leading Businessmen, and numerous Coaches in both the HS and Collegiate, ranks).
Clark has as much local support as anyone could hope to have as he's impacted baseball from Morristown to Mountain City and all points in between with coaching stints at all the aforementioned college locations plus rebuilding a Morristown West HS program that had fell off the map. But not only that he has put on many, many camps and clinics all over the area (Many Free!). He's gave individual lessons to youth from ages 8 to 18 and gave many honest evaluations as courtesies to local prospects and some that maybe weren't the prospects they or their parents thought while all the while telling these folks the "truth" about what they should expect and what he saw of of them as a prospect.
He has statewide respect in the baseball world from Memphis to the East Tennessee mountains, from Chattanooga to Knoxville and everywhere in between, again via Professional, College, and high School Coaching Clinics he's put on or been a featured speaker/instructor at. Again all over the state and the whole country really. He has professional respect as well with endorsements from the best of the best. Do Nolan Ryan, Greg Maddux, and Orel Hershiser ring any bells? Do you think those names could help any when recruiting the top HS prospects?
Lastly the easiest part of the decision for Sander was that Danny Clark was the type of top end, elite hire that Steve Forbes has been but with one noticeable caveat, he wouldn't be looking for greener or larger pastures every time the gate was left open. DC was wanting to put down roots and stay here. He is still in his 40's, has 4 young children and could/would be here for years to come. After some number crunching, sacrificing and a lot of praying had agreed to take a substantial salary cut to come back home! He had a plan with some top notch assistants and was looking to build ETSU back up to a prominent player in the collegiate baseball scene.
This was a slam dunk hire as much as anyone could expect at a place like ETSU. We failed to take advantage. Maybe it was one of those cases where the AD failed to see the beautiful forest on the mountain because of the trees.
Good luck to Sander and crew going forward.
/
Baseball Search
