'At this time'
Can LSU afford to keep the nation's best college baseball coach?
Jay Johnson isn't going anywhere. He said so himself—almost.
What it means: LSU's two-time national champion baseball coach has made no secret of his concern over the program's funding. Now every word he utters is being micro-analyzed by fans and insiders alike for signs of a wandering eye.
What happened: Asked last Wednesday about his interest in managing at the Major League level, Johnson chose his words carefully. "I have zero interest in that at this time," he said. "Now, that is at this time. I will say that I have not been offered an MLB job."
The backstory: RedEye sources within the LSU administration and the booster community confirm the concern is real. "Keep Jay" has become something of an internal rallying cry—but sources say it will take roster money, not words, to make it happen. Player acquisition increasingly resembles a free agent market, and LSU baseball isn't keeping pace.
- Johnson told Tiger Rag in February: "There are some schools that are all in on baseball. And we need to be one of those schools. We're not there yet."
- As RedEye reported last week in a three-part series on the business of LSU Athletics, the department faces mounting pressure to fund four programs—possibly five, if including gymnastics—at national title-contending levels simultaneously. Baseball's slice of that pie is very much in question.
- Tennessee's Tony Vitello—Johnson's most prominent rival—departed for the San Francisco Giants after last season. Johnson on Vitello's transition: "I think it is cool and awesome. I'm following it closely. I am very interested in how it goes."
The bottom line: LSU has one of the most valuable baseball programs in the country. Keeping the coach who made it that way will cost more than words.
