USC’s young staff can look to Matt Price for postseason advice

South Carolina’s entire weekend rotation, as well as closer Tyler Johnson, have yet to appear in an NCAA Tournament game, but luckily for the Gamecocks, perhaps the most clutch pitcher in NCAA postseason history is eager to offer advice.

Former Gamecocks closer Matt Price, who holds the record for the most wins in College World Series history with five, is back with the team and serving as a Student Assistant Coach for South Carolina this year as he returns to school to finish his degree.

Price, who holds the SEC record with 43 saves, will do his best to help Clarke Schmidt, Braden Webb, Adam Hill, Johnson, and the rest of USC’s pitching staff stay cool, calm and collected as long as the Gamecocks remain alive in postseason play.

“He’s not going to be fazed by the moment for sure, and I believe that he’ll be able to help our pitchers with what they’re going through just based on his experiences,” USC coach Chad Holbrook said. “Obviously he has a wealth of knowledge.”

Price was instrumental in USC’s run to back-to-back national titles, as well as a runner-up finish in 2012.

In addition to holding the record for most career College World Series wins with five, he’s also tied for third with four saves in Omaha, and has finished the most games at the College World Series with 11.

Price believes the key to having success in the postseason is having the right mindset.

“I think it was just making sure that I didn’t make the situation bigger than it was, even if it was closing out a game in the World Series or closing the game out against someone else during the regular season, you’ve just got to have that same approach you’ve always had,” he said. “You’ve got to take it one game at a time, one at bat, one pitch at a time because you can’t let the game get too big right away. You’ve got to go out there and have fun and play the game that you love.”

Price was drafted in the seventh round of the 2012 MLB draft by the Baltimore Orioles. He stopped playing baseball after a couple of years in the minors and set a goal to become a full-time coach.

He said you see the game in a whole new light while watching from the dugout instead of on the mound.

“It’s a little bit more intense for me now than it was back when I was pitching in those situations,” he said. “I’m a little bit more nervous now than I was when I was pitching in them, but we’ve got some good guys that can close out games.”

Holbrook added Price has been helpful as a Student Assistant, and believes the USC legend has a long coaching career ahead of him.

“He’s been great for our pitchers, and a great resource for even our position players. I love what he does for us in the game, too, from looking at pitcher’s tendencies to figuring out things and helping Coach (Jerry) Meyers in regards to calling pitches,” Holbrook said. “I thought he was going to be a great coach before this all happened, but now I’m convinced he can coach as long as he wants and he’s going to be great at it.”

Price will spend this summer coaching the Blowfish and hopes to land a permanent coaching gig somewhere moving forward.

“I’m going to try to find something coaching wise, and if not then I’ll see what life’s got for me,” he said.

This story was originally published May 31, 2016 at 10:28 PM with the headline "USC’s young staff can look to Matt Price for postseason advice."