Legendary former coach Gary Gilmore speaks on Coastal Carolina baseball’s CWS run

OMAHA, Neb. (WMBF) - The last time Coastal Carolina baseball made it this far, legendary coach Gary Gilmore was leading the team.

Now that Gilmore has put down the clipboard, he’s watching from a different point of view.

Gilmore, who racked up over 1,100 wins as CCU’s coach, was in Omaha, Nebraska, for the Chanticleers’ first two games in the College World Series, this time watching from the stands.

His 28 years with the Chanticleers were marked by incredible highs, including winning CCU’s first national championship in 2016.

On the road to that championship that year, the Gilmore-led team had to go through the LSU Tigers to get to Omaha.

Now, the Tigers are CCU’s opponent in the best-of-three championship series.

Gilmore said there is no better team for CCU to face.

“In the real world of college baseball, if you’re a mid-major, the SEC is the evil giant,” Gilmore said, referring to the conference the Tigers play in. “You definitely want to see them and get to take ‘em down.”

Despite the Tigers’ SEC pedigree, Gilmore said it’s LSU that will have to figure out how to stop CCU.

“I haven’t really seen a game plan that I thought had any chance at this point, up to now, of beating our guys,” Gilmore said.

After Gilmore retired in 2024, Kevin Schnall took over and has led the Chanticleers all the way to this point in his first year as head coach.

Gilmore added that he will be back in Omaha to cheer on CCU this weekend as the team looks for its second national championship in program history.

Click here for details on how to watch the championship series.

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