USF Promotes Pitching Coach Billy Mohl To Head Baseball Coach

When news broke that former head baseball coach Mark Kingston was taking the vacant position at South Carolina, the name mentioned most often as a potential replacement was pitching coach Billy Mohl.

Fast forward a few hours and...

In a press release issued this evening, Athletic Director Mark Harlan said:

“We are very excited to be able to continue the tremendous momentum of our baseball program with Billy Mohl as our head coach,” USF Director of Athletics Mark Harlan said. “As I spoke to baseball people across the country, the respect for Coach Mohl as a coach and a person was profound. He has a tremendous track record of recruiting and developing high caliber student-athletes, did a tremendous job with our pitching staff over the past three seasons and is more than ready to lead our program. We are happy he, his wife, Krista, and their family, will be staying in Tampa and remain a vital part of the Bulls family.”

Mohl guided the Bulls pitching staff to a program-record 620 strikeouts this past season and a team ERA of 3.24. USF pitchers have struck out at least 500 batters in each of Mohl’s three seasons as pitching coach.

Eight Bulls have been drafted under Mohl’s tutelage, including Phoenix Sanders, Joe Cavallaro and Ryan Valdes in the 2017 draft. The others are Jimmy Herget, Tommy Peterson, Casey Mulholland, Brandon Lawson, and Tommy Eveld.

Said Mohl in the release:

It's a tremendous honor to be given the task of leading this program,” Mohl said. “I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity Mark Harlan, President Genshaft and this entire university has given me. USF will always have a special place in my heart. The support from the campus has been great for both me and my family since I arrived, and I look forward to making this community proud by leading a successful baseball program.”

The players are excited to have Mohl in charge as well:

Mohl played for Kingston at Tulane before joining the staff after he graduated in 2007. He then followed Kingston to Illinois State in 2010 before coming to Tampa when Kingston took over the floundering USF program.

If you want any evidence of the impact Mohl had on this team, look no further than the Tulane series this past year. He missed the series for the birth of his son and the Bulls dropped two of three against a team under .500.

Once again Harlan has made lemonade out of lemons after having a coach vultured by a Power 5 program. Congratualtions Coach Mohl and good luck.