It’s No Longer “Vanntastic” in “Starkvegas”
Tuesday provided stunning news out of Starkville, MS as the “Vanntastic Era” at Mississippi State ended when the Bulldogs announced they have parted ways with head coach, Vann Stuedeman, after eight seasons.
But what led to this sudden departure? After all it’s the middle of July which is late in the hiring cycle and could potentially put the rest of the country in a hiring tailspin.
Stuedeman was in Atlanta recruiting as normal this past weekend at the Atlanta Legacy and Triple Crown National events. There were also no rumors or speculations of a move being made, it truly came out of no where. Worth mentioning, Mississippi State also held a donor dinner last night so the timing is even more bizarre.
The Bulldogs are coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance for the seventh time in eight seasons under Stuedeman. Which on paper seems to be a successful run and even in the Mississippi State press release, Stuedeman and Bulldogs Athletic Director John Cohen were very complimentary of each other. So what happened?
There two things in play that led to Tuesday’s decision: this off-season seven Bulldogs players have entered the transfer portal. Ironically, we learned earlier in the day where couple of them were going as James Madison announced the addition of pitcher Kayla Boseman for the 2020 season and Florida announced the signing of infielder Kinsey Goelz, who will be eligible to play in 2021.
Sources tell FastpitchNews that the current number of players entering the transfer portal was a concern.
Rumors that have been speculated around the travel ball world include that Bulldogs’ star player and All-American, Mia Davidson, and her sister Montana Davidson were considering leaving the program to play closer to home; which is Hillsborough, North Carolina. However sources have told FPN that the Davidsons are staying and are not a factor in this decision. As of the release of this article are not in the transfer portal; though, that doesn’t mean that cannot change down the road.
Still the administration was concerned with more departures coming and that they could get hit with a mass exodus similar to Oregon last off-season. There a belief that Cohen, who is friends with Stuedeman, wanted her to change and adapt more to relate to players.
While one can come to the conclusion that player departures and possible complaints may have been what triggered this reaction, the main factor that has played the biggest role in this is the success of the rival.
While Stuedeman’s tenure is considered a success, one source mention that there were internal frustrations with the program considering that Ole Miss is coming off a run to the Super Regionals for the second time in three seasons and were in the mix for the SEC regular season championship this past season. That could be what is behind the motivation to make this change and with players departing the program perhaps convinced Cohen that Stuedeman had taken the program as far as she can.
After all, as one source told FPN Tuesday night that making the NCAA Tournament in the SEC is now the “norm” and expectation with everyone making the field the last couple of seasons.
So the question now is what’s next for Stuedeman and Mississippi State?
Let’s start with Stuedeman. She may choose to sit out the 2020 season and take the year off in order to see what coaching jobs are available after the 2020 season. Perhaps she may consider helping out her sister, Les Stuedeman, who is the head coach at Division II Alabama-Huntsville during the upcoming season?
For Mississippi State they began the national search and we break down possible candidates for the job here:
Continue reading to learn who could be considered for the head coaching position at Mississippi State below. Need a subscription? Use the code ‘INSIDER” for a special 25% discount.
Tyler Bratton – Cohen could decide to promote Bratton to the head coaching position either full-time or as an interim for 2020 season with the idea that he is popular among the players and could prevent more from departing the program. Bratton is also a Bulldog alum that Cohen knows well.
Bratton played college baseball for legendary baseball and Bulldogs head coach, Ron Polk, from 2006-2007. Cohen took over for Polk in 2009 and was at the helm of the program from 2009-2016 before moving into Mississippi State’s administration. Bratton was on Cohen’s baseball staff in 2009 as the coordinator of Baseball Operations.
Samantha Ricketts – Ricketts, who was promoted to associate head coach last fall, would perhaps have the edge over Bratton because of her title if Cohen decides to promote from within. Ricketts has also been known to be popular with players.
Ruben Felix– I mentioned earlier how the success of the Ole Miss Rebels under Mike Smith is an underlying factor that contributed to Stuedeman’s ousting. Perhaps Cohen tries to weaken the Rebels’ program by hiring Smith’s right hand man in Ruben Felix who is the associate head coach. He has been part of the staff since 2014 and is known to be a great recruiter.
Rich Calvert – Look for Drake head coach, Rich Calvert, to be considered by Cohen. Calvert is coming off another successful season at Drake, leading the program to the NCAA Tournament for the 16th time in his 18 seasons at the helm. Sources told FastpitchNews late Tuesday night that Calvert will be a candidate. While Calvert’s name may surprise some, considering all his ties are in the Midwest, he has family living near the Gulf Port in Mississippi and last year Cohen hired Chris Lemonis to become the new head coach of the Bulldogs’ baseball squad; Lemonis came from Indiana. Would Cohen perhaps reach out to another successful head coach from a Midwest program?
Gerry Glasco– Glasco has obvious ties in the SEC with his time as an assistant coach at Texas A&M and Georgia. It would not be surprised if Glasco is among top of Cohen’s list. Still it would be hard to see Glasco leave Louisiana where he just finished his second season coming within a win away from the Super Regional and will have a talented roster back in 2020 as favorite in Sun Belt and make a deep post season run.
Beth Mullins– Mullins just finished her sixth season as the head coach of Troy leading them to a 37-20 season. Mullins was an assistant at Mississippi State under Studeman from 2012-2014 helping the Bulldogs get to the NCAA Tournament all three seasons. This led her to Troy. On Monday, Mullins hired former Bulldogs star pitcher, Holly Ward, to join her coaching staff. Perhaps a Mullins-Ward combo return may be what Cohen, a Mississippi State alum himself, may be looking for.
Jimmy Kolaitis – If this job was open last off-season, Jimmy Kolaitis would have been among the front runners as Kolaitis, long time assistance at Oregon under Mike White, was a hot name. Kolaitis was hired last year by UAB and completed his first season in 2019. Kolaitis is also known as great recruiter and has ties all through south which would make him a strong option for Mississippi State.
Mark Montgomery– Montgomery has helped turn Louisiana Tech into a winning program and has led the Lady Techsters to the NCAA Tournament in two of the last three seasons, winning the C-USA Championship (2017-2019) as the head coach.
Jamie Trachsel – A name that may throw many for a surprise but isn’t actually all that far fetched, Minnesota’s Jamie Trachsel could be a candidate for this position. It is known that the SEC is of strong interest to Trachsel who is entering the final year of her initial contract at Minnesota (three years). There is also word that the extension she was offered was minimal as there are still bumps and concerns being worked out through the on going transition. Coming off leading Minnesota to the program’s first Women’s College World Series this would be the perfect time for Trachsel to leverage that success if she is interested in pursuing another opportunity. Trachsel recruits the south and the west heavily and with former Ole Miss volunteer, Katie Rietkovich, on staff (and those nearby recruiting connections) that could be an intriguing combo for Cohen to consider.
One thing is for sure, if Cohen’s previous hires at Mississippi State (which include the football and baseball head coaching jobs) are any indication, he will work quickly as those searches did not take long. Sources say the goal is to have the new head coach in place prior to the players reporting for the fall semester.
We may have an answer soon on who will call Starkvegas home.
