BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU coach Paul Mainieri announced Wednesday that pitching coach Alan Dunn has been promoted to associate head coach and former Tiger pitcher Nate Fury has been named coordinator of baseball operations.
Dunn, entering his sixth season at LSU, is regarded as one of the nation’s elite pitching coaches, and he was named National Pitching Coach of the Year in 2015. During Dunn’s five-season LSU tenure (2012-16), the Tigers have earned five NCAA Tournament National Seeds, two College World Series appearances, four NCAA Regional titles, two SEC championships, three SEC Western Division titles and two SEC Tournament crowns.
Dunn has coached four Major League Baseball pitchers at LSU, including starting pitchers Kevin Gausman of the Baltimore Orioles and Aaron Nola of the Philadelphia Phillies, both of whom were first-round draft choices. Two other Dunn products at LSU – Nick Rumbelow and Nick Goody – have pitched as relievers for the New York Yankees.
Dunn has produced a total of 14 LSU pitchers that were selected in the Major League Baseball draft, including seven in the first 10 rounds.
“I am proud to announce a new title for the man who I consider to be the very best pitching coach in all of baseball and a guy I wouldn’t trade for anyone,” Mainieri said. “Besides being the pitching coach, Alan Dunn will now be referred to as the Associate Head Coach for the LSU Baseball program. This is a title that best describes his value to our team as my right-hand man. As pitching coach of the team, he basically coaches half of the team on a daily basis and his influence on their performance cannot be overstated.
“During his first five years as the pitching coach at LSU, our pitching staff has performed at the very highest level in the SEC, and he has continually tutored pitchers that have developed into high draft picks and future big leaguers. We have been a National Seed every year he has been here, and we have won more games than any team in the nation over the time he has worked with our pitchers. I don’t think that is a coincidence and, despite him being very humble and not looking for individual credit, I think this title is very symbolic of his value to LSU.”
Fury, who pitched at LSU in 2013 and 2014, takes over the position that was held last season by Micah Gibbs, who was appointed the Tigers’ volunteer assistant coach last month. Fury, a native of Harahan, La., made 46 career relief appearances for the Tigers, posting a 5-2 record and a 2.45 ERA in 47.2 innings with 38 strikeouts. He made 20 relief appearances in 2013, helping LSU to a College World Series appearance, and he made 26 appearances in 2014, recording a 3-1 mark with a 2.15 ERA.
Fury, who has an LSU degree in sports administration, was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 2014 MLB Draft, and he pitched in the minor leagues for three seasons. He was a two-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll during his LSU career.
“It will be great to have Nate back with the LSU baseball program,” Mainieri said. “He once contributed in a big way as a vital relief pitcher on a College World Series team. He then pursued his dream of playing professional baseball and now will make significant contributions to our program once again, albeit in a different way. I know Nate loves the LSU baseball program and would do anything to serve it. He will handle a multitude of tasks and will represent the program in a first-class way.”
Wednesday’s announcements complete LSU’s 2017 coaching staff, which also includes assistant coach/recruiting coordinator Nolan Cain and undergraduate assistant coach Sean Ochinko.
“What a thrill it is for me personally to have four former players serving on the staff at LSU,” Mainieri said. “Nolan Cain, Micah Gibbs, and Sean Ochinko all played vital roles on our 2009 National Championship team, and Nate Fury played a significant role on our team that went to the CWS in 2013. Many successful coaches in other sports, like Coach K at Duke, have constantly utilized former players on their staffs. The obvious value in this is that these former players know how we operate the program, know what it takes to win, love the program and are very loyal to it, and bring so much youthful enthusiasm to our environment with the players.
“They are all knowledgeable baseball minds that played professional baseball and are tremendous coaches. Along with Alan Dunn, the chemistry on our staff is exactly what you hope for as a head coach.”
LSU, ranked No. 2 in the Collegiate Baseball preseason poll, begins practice on January 27, and the Tigers open the 2017 season at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 17, when they play host to Air Force in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.