OMAHA, Neb. — Though many athletic programs outside NCAA Division I’s four most powerful conferences are expected to drop off competitively when scholarship limits are removed and revenue sharing begins July 1, College World Series finalist Coastal Carolina is committed to continue playing with the big boys in baseball.
Rosters will be capped at 34 in D-I baseball going forward, and first-year athletic director Chance Miller told The Associated Press all 34 players at Coastal Carolina would receive full scholarships and be in line for direct revenue-sharing payments. Miller said he also believes the Chanticleers’ opportunities for name, image and likeness earnings will compare favorably with those for power conference baseball programs within two years.
Baseball is the flagship sport for Coastal Carolina, which competes in the Sun Belt Conference, far outside of the Power Four of the Atlantic Coast, Big 12, Big Ten and Southeastern conferences. The Chanticleers have played in 21 NCAA baseball tournaments since 1991, won the 2016 College World Series for their first national championship in any sport, and they’ll take a 26-game winning streak that began two months ago into the best-of-three CWS finals against SEC power and seven-time national champ LSU starting Saturday night.
First-year head coach Kevin Schnall, a veteran assistant before taking over the baseball program, said the athletic administration’s support “at the highest level” is a big reason the Chants are back in Omaha with a chance to go 2-for-2 when it comes to CWS appearances and national titles.
“What I mean by that is they enabled us to hire an elite coaching staff that would rival any coaching staff in the entire country,” Schnall said. “They give us the resources to put our players in the best position to become the best players that they can be. And it’s an absolute team effort.”