Holbrook homecoming: USC coach returns to Chapel Hill

Chad Holbrook cracks a sly smile as soon as he hears the question.

The first-year coach of the South Carolina baseball team knows he’s going to have to answer one query after another about his Tar Heel roots as he prepares to take the Gamecocks to play North Carolina in the NCAA Super Regional at Chapel Hill this weekend.

The Shelby, N.C., native played at UNC for four seasons (1990-93) and coached there as an assistant for 15 seasons (1994-2008) before leaving to became a USC assistant coach under Ray Tanner beginning with the 2009 season. He admits the connection to his alma mater is strong as his team faces the Tar Heels for the right to advance to the College World Series.

“I don’t think it’s going to be like any other normal trip, for sure. I’ve got fond memories of that place,” Holbrook said. “Shoot, I had two kids there. I’ve been through a lot there. We won a lot of games, and I was part of that program for a long time. So it’ll be an emotional time, but at the same point in time, I’m excited to take my team, the University of South Carolina, there to play the No. 1 seed.”

His sons, Reece, 11, and Cooper, 8, are Chapel Hill natives. His wife, Jennifer, a Columbia native, served as an administrative assistant to UNC basketball coach Roy Williams for years. Holbrook considers Williams, who provided considerable support to the family when Reece was diagnosed with cancer at an early age before beating it, one of his best friends as well as a father figure.

Holbrook’s sister, Nicole, is married to Dave Arendas, UNC’s director of baseball operations, and their son, DC, is a freshman infielder who plays for his uncle at South Carolina. Holbrook remains close friends with Scott Forbes, UNC’s pitching coach, and Tyson Lusk, UNC’s clubhouse and equipment manager, and he talks to Forbes three or four times each week.

“There are going to be coaches in the other dugout that were in my wedding, and I was in their’s. It’s going to be weird when it comes to those kinds of things,” Holbrook said. “But when that first pitch is thrown, we’re going to do everything we can to help our team win.”

Ah yes, winning. That’s where Holbrook wants to keep the focus for his team. He would prefer that his homecoming take a backseat, but he understands there are mixed emotions on both sides.

“I’ve heard from a lot of former players that I coached up there, and they’ve all wished me well, saying good luck, and how difficult it’s going to be for them, too,” he said.

These are two elite programs, and both are seeking another coveted trip to Omaha to play for a championship. Holbrook, who was an All-ACC outfielder for the Tar Heels as a senior, served as an assistant on the UNC teams that reached the CWS from 2006 to 2008, losing in the championship series to Oregon State in 2006-07. And he helped Tanner get the past three USC teams to the CWS, with the Gamecocks winning national titles in 2010 and 2011.

Holbrook insists he has put away his light blue.

“When I left North Carolina, I was 37 years old. At that point in time, I had spent half of my life on that campus, either as a player or a coach. So I was entrenched there,” he said. “But five years is a long time, too, and I bleed garnet and black now. I hope to be at the University of South Carolina for the rest of my coaching career. Now this is my school. I’m proud to be here.”

Senior first baseman LB Dantzler, one of the USC’s captains, said Holbrook has done a good job keeping the focus on the games instead of the coach. He believes the Gamecocks have motivation that goes past the Holbrook connection.

“I know it’s going to be a special weekend for him. I’m excited for him and, hopefully, we can go there and win for him,” Dantzler said. “More importantly than any of that, we want to go to Omaha. That’s our goal, regardless of how we get there. We definitely want to make him proud, and that means going through North Carolina this year.”

The teams met in the postseason when Holbrook stood in the UNC dugout. USC knocked the Tar Heels out of the NCAA tournament in the 2002 regional, 2003 Super Regional, and 2004 regional, all played in Columbia. UNC returned the favor in Chapel Hill in the 2007 Super Regional.

“There were some great games, and I remember thinking about how hard it is to win here (in Columbia),” Holbrook said.

The current versions of these teams know each other well, especially with college baseball’s presence on television these days, which aids in scouting. And, of course, they keep up with each other because the coaches talk to each other.

Holbrook had some good counsel when it comes to facing a former school. Williams has coached both North Carolina and Kansas, and those two top programs have faced each other in important basketball games.

“He knows the emotions involved. He knows it’s very difficult. He knows what it’s like to coach against a school or program that he has a lot of love for,” Holbrook said.

He said he doesn’t have a close personal relationship with UNC coach Mike Fox, who retained Holbrook as an assistant on his staff after UNC fired Mike Roberts before the 1999 season.

“I walk by Mike, and we’re going to speak, and we’re going to talk. I have the utmost respect for him, and I owe him the shirt off my back for the opportunities that he gave me,” Holbrook said. “I’m coaching South Carolina because of what he’s allowed me to do, and I wouldn’t be where I am without his help and guidance. I think the world of him as a coach, and he’s done a great job at the program where I played.”

But when the first pitch is thrown Friday afternoon, Holbrook knows it’s less about the coaches than it is about the players on the field. They have a shared respect for each other, but if they’re going to get where they want to go, they’ll have to get past one of the country’s best programs.

“At the end of the day, it’s a showcase of what college baseball is all about as an intense and emotional game with a lot on the line,” Holbrook said. “We’re playing for the ultimate goal of the College World Series.”

Super Regional preview

This story was originally published June 5, 2013 at 9:33 PM.