What we’re hearing about Kevin Schnall, South Carolina baseball coaching search
The search for South Carolina’s baseball coach shouldn’t last too much longer.
Gamecocks athletic director Jeremiah Donati told The State last week that he’d started interviewing candidates but stressed that patience was needed, given that USC’s top contenders were coaching in the NCAA Tournament.
Those top choices, according to D1 Baseball’s Kendall Rodgers, were Coastal Carolina’s Kevin Schnall and West Virginia’s Steve Sabins.
Schnall’s Chanticleers saw their season end on Sunday and traveled back to Conway on Monday, freeing him up for potentially extended conversations. On the other hand, West Virginia hosts Kentucky on Monday night in a do-or-die regional matchup, meaning it's still unclear when Sabins will be available.
The State recently spoke with three sources familiar with the search. As of Monday, all signs point toward Schnall as USC’s clear frontrunner, which shouldn’t be a surprise.
After 24 seasons as an assistant coach — 21 of which came at Coastal under Gary Gilmore — Schnall became the Chants’ head coach in 2025 and led them to the College World Series Final in his first year. It was the furthest a mid-major program had advanced since Coastal Carolina won the national championship in 2016.
This season, despite dealing with a bevvy of injuries throughout the season, the Chants won 37 games and spent a majority of the year ranked inside the top 25. They were just one of four reigning 2025 College World Series participants to reach the 2026 NCAA Tournament (none of those teams made it out of their regionals).
If Schnall does become the Gamecocks’ head coach, the role will come with a massive salary bump. After receiving an extension following the Omaha run, Schnall was earning a $500,000 base salary in 2026 along with the opportunity to cash in from a long list of incentives.
While South Carolina was paying baseball coach Paul Mainieri $1.3 million in 2026, Schnall’s contract (if he takes the job) would likely top that figure, a source said. As is often the case with new hires, the head coach’s salary can be a statement about how serious a program is about winning: A monetary message to recruits and transfers that a program will do whatever it takes to be successful.
And, well, South Carolina could use some success. The Gamecocks haven’t been to the College World Series since Ray Tanner transitioned from baseball coach to athletic director in 2013 and each of his successors — Chad Holbrook, Mark Kingston and Mainieri — lost at a higher rate than the last.
