HAWK ZONE

Dan Fitzgerald waited for a chance like this. Now, he's Kansas baseball’s new head coach

Topeka Capital-Journal

Dan Fitzgerald has joined Kansas baseball as the Jayhawks' new head coach.

LAWRENCE — As Dan Fitzgerald spoke last week at his introduction as Kansas baseball’s new head coach, he recalled a conversation that took place just days earlier.

Fitzgerald, who joined the Jayhawks after a season as an assistant on LSU’s coaching staff, was in his living room talking to his family. Fitzgerald, who has three young sons — Will, Max and Ben — and a wife, Kelly, said there was a moment when his boys realized they’d be able to be in the dugout as bat boys. And, according to Fitzgerald, they all started saying, “Rock Chalk,” real fast.

They may not have quite known what they were saying. Fitzgerald allowed that they had to look up what “Rock Chalk” meant. But Fitzgerald explained as well that telling those kids they could have that role was an easy sell, and given he signed a six-year deal to lead Kansas they’ll all certainly have plenty of opportunities to use that phrase again.

“I am incredibly blessed and we’re very thankful to be here,” said Fitzgerald, who spent nine seasons as an assistant coach at Dallas Baptist prior to heading to LSU. “Why KU? It checked every box, like every box — people, the institution, the location. I really identify as a builder. Like, I want to build. I want to be a part of something special for a really, really long time. And I want something to be home.”

Fitzgerald and his family always had the goal together of him progressing to a head coaching position like Kansas’ someday. They wanted it to be at a place they felt strongly about, and a situation his wife once described to him as, “How do we do this where everyone wins?” And they came to the conclusion together, that that’s what they found in Kansas.

The focus, for Fitzgerald, then shifted to finalizing the rest of his coaching staff and doing what he can to assemble his first Jayhawks roster. Kansas athletic director Travis Goff said there’s no reason why there can’t be an expectation that the Jayhawks compete for Big 12 Conference championships and operate as regular postseason contenders. There are reasons to believe Fitzgerald can be the coach to make that happen in time, it’s just a matter of whether it does.

Fitzgerald is replacing Ritch Price, who retired after 20 seasons as Kansas’ head coach. Price, who both Fitzgerald and Goff praised, ended that run as the winningest head coach in program history. Price also reached just three NCAA regionals and won one Big 12 tournament title.

Being ready for the responsibility

Fitzgerald has been a head coach before, actually.

Ahead of joining the staff at Dallas Baptist, Fitzgerald spent 2008-2012 as the head coach at Des Moines Area Community College. He took over there, less than a decade after getting his start in coaching at Iowa as a volunteer assistant. As Goff talked about it, he highlighted how it necessitated Fitzgerald grow quickly and often.

There, Fitzgerald and his teams enjoyed regular success. They won five-straight conference titles. They reached the Junior College World Series four different times.

But there’s more to Fitzgerald being ready to lead Kansas, for someone like Goff or Dallas Baptist head coach Dan Heefner, than just that. As Heefner explained it, it’s not even just Fitzgerald’s ability as an on-field coach or great recruiter. It’s about Fitzgerald’s ability to implement a culture and handle all aspects of a program, including player development and facilities.

“I’m so fired up for him,” Heefner said about Fitzgerald. “Dan did a tremendous job for us, and he is a head coach. Like, there are — coaches are just like players, where some you’ve got different gifts and different strengths and all that kind of stuff. And a lot of Dan’s strengths are seeing the big picture and leadership and connecting with people. And it’s just like — that was one thing that I think made him so good at DBU, is we basically had two head coaches.”

In Heefner’s estimation, Fitzgerald both benefited from being DMACC’s head coach and already had natural traits necessary for the role Fitzgerald has now. Fitzgerald could connect with people anyway, sure, but also gained the experience of five years running his own program. There’s a difference, Heefner said, between being an assistant who recruits and works with hitters and a head coach that’s involved in everything — even fundraising and working with the administration.

Fitzgerald likes to think he was a better assistant coach, after the time he spent as a head coach. There are things he doesn’t care so much about now that he did as a younger head coach, and things he didn’t think much about then that are much more in focus for him now. He gushed about being able to learn from head coaches like Heefner and LSU’s Jay Johnson, and hopes he can add what he’s taken from them to what was successful for him at DMACC.

If what enabled Fitzgerald to enjoy success there was a five-step plan, he didn’t throw up a presentation and outline it at his introductory press conference. But he did mention a plan he and his players will tackle in the coming months, and note he’s confident they’ll bring in the right people to bolster what’s already in place at Kansas. And Goff made sure to praise the specificity of what Fitzgerald has in store.

“I also want to highlight that Dan’s plan in this interview process was a plan that was unique to the University of Kansas,” said Goff, who allowed there were formal interviews with more than 10 candidates and multiple people were brought to campus. “It wasn’t one that you could have pulled out and presented to program X or program Y, or institution X or Y. It was thoughtfully crafted over years of experience and over a background that puts him exactly where he’s supposed to be right here at KU.”

Goff and Heefner both spoke to how Fitzgerald could have already been a head coach again, too. Goff said there were coaches who knew Fitzgerald who were spoken to during the search process who said, “Dan could have been a head coach all over this country six years ago.”

That Fitzgerald has been a candidate in head coaching searches in recent years, and been someone that Goff said hasn’t been outwardly campaigning for it all, had Goff highlighting Fitzgerald’s humility. As Fitzgerald has said about himself, Goff pointed to him as someone who was looking for the right opportunity.

Heefner sees Fitzgerald, whom he described as patient, as a winner who has won at a high level and wants to continue to win at a high level. Heefner alluded to there being head coaching jobs that, either because of the situation at those schools or something else, it’s tough to succeed at.

“This is one that he’s extremely excited about, to work with Travis Goff, and just the commitment that Kansas is making and the passion they have to have a winning program,” Heefner said. “I think it’s something that’s real exciting and it’s going to be fun to watch him build the program there.”

Heefner liked the idea of Fitzgerald bringing kids around the team. He noted it is something they’ve done at Dallas Baptist for years. Heefner said it’s a good thing for Fitzgerald’s players to see Fitzgerald being a great father and husband.

Fitzgerald said his son Ben is a “right-right slugger,” and Max a “stud.” Fitzgerald described Will as a left-handed pitcher who also plays outfield and first base.

“And (Will) is left-handed,” said Fitzgerald, who’s from Minnesota. “That’s part of why I married Kelly. Kelly’s left-handed, too. Kelly says that’s not funny. I’m like, ‘People laugh every time I say it.’”

‘It’s not just about getting the best talent’

During Fitzgerald’s stints at LSU and Dallas Baptist, he served as each program’s recruiting coordinator. As Goff introduced Fitzgerald, among the many qualities Goff highlighted was Fitzgerald’s ability as a recruiter. And Heefner didn’t hesitate to begin listing the reasons why he feels describing Fitzgerald as elite in that area is accurate.

Heefner said Fitzgerald both has the necessary work ethic, and the ability to develop relationships. Those relationships, Heefner said, are formed not just with prospects, but with scouts, high school coaches, junior college coaches and others. Heefner described Fitzgerald as capable of identifying talents Fitzgerald knows will fit within how the program is supposed to run.

“I think that’s something that made him a really good recruiter is, it’s not just about getting the best talent,” said Heefner, who reached seven NCAA regionals with Fitzgerald on staff. “It’s about getting the best talent that’s a good fit for your situation. And I think Dan has great discernment. I think he reads people really well and he’s able to make those decisions at an extremely high level.”

One name Heefner mentioned, as an example of what Fitzgerald is able to do in recruiting, was Bryce Ball. Fitzgerald recruited Ball to Dallas Baptist from North Iowa Area Community College, and saw Ball lead the Missouri Valley Conference in home runs and RBIs in 2019 in Ball’s first season at Dallas Baptist. Heefner pointed to Ball as an example of Fitzgerald identifying a player who has another level they can reach, and after doing so Ball went on to be selected in the 24th round of the 2019 Major League Baseball draft by the Atlanta Braves.

Fitzgerald spoke about his knowledge of the junior college ranks during his introductory press conference. Specifically, he was talking about how well he knows the various institutions that fit that description that are in the state of Kansas, and noted that he’d have spent more time in Lawrence over the years if it had a junior college for him to recruit at. Maybe, moving forward, it’ll be a key part of his recruiting blueprint.

Overall, Fitzgerald described a recruiting philosophy that starts locally before broadening out. If there’s someone a mile from campus who’s good enough, he’ll try to bring that prospect in and then extend the radius from there. He said he tries to give prospects a picture of how they’re viewed, and what he believes is possible for them.

“We’ve already started on that,” Fitzgerald said.

Early victories on the recruiting trail will be important for a number of reasons, but also because of two athletes who announced their intentions to transfer to Southeastern Conference programs since the season ended. Maui Ahuna chose Tennessee, and Cooper McMurray chose Auburn. Ahuna led the Jayhawks in hits and batting average this past season, while McMurray finished second in home runs.

A commitment to build Kansas baseball

Fitzgerald downplayed the potential challenges in front of him at Kansas, and said what they’ll be doing is about the people he’ll have on his side. He said that, although he considered Dallas Baptist’s stadium beautiful, he spent very little time talking about it with recruits. He said that, even at as storied a program as LSU, he spent next to no time talking about facilities.

But Goff acknowledged both what they’re facing as they try to move the program forward, and that those conversations have been had between the two of them. In addition to just the sheer talent the Big 12 has, which Goff embraces, he pointed to the weather dynamic Kansas will continue to face. Goff highlighted the topics of facilities and financial resources.

“What we talked about from the first conversation and throughout, and will continue to talk about, is that’s something that has to be done arm-in-arm,” said Goff, who described the path they’re on as a journey. “It can’t be a scenario, nor could it be with football or men’s basketball or women’s basketball or any team, where a head coach has a snapshot of what resources need to be and an administration says, ‘Well here’s the reality.’ And you’ve got this huge divide and disconnect.”

Goff said it was important, with this hire and what will come after it, to show a commitment to Jayhawks baseball. There’s no debate, in Goff’s mind, that aspiring for more with this team means it needs additional resources. If there are 16 programs at Kansas, Goff wants to pursue excellence in all of them.

“We had an arm-in-arm commitment in launching into this search,” Goff said. “I mean, we’re calling across the country, talking to head coaches, that’s part of the story we’re developing. We’re not making false promises or false commitments or jumping too far ahead of ourselves. But we’re saying, ‘Hey, this is an opportunity that the University of Kansas has embraced to build this program right, to resource it at a level that’s commensurate with these heightened expectations.’”

Fitzgerald’s contract stipulates that, after the fourth year is completed, “the parties shall meet together in good faith” to evaluate the program and see if its status warrants increasing Fitzgerald’s annual compensation and the contract’s length. Fitzgerald’s base salary starts at $500,000 in year one, and then moves to $520,000 in year two, $530,000 in year three and $540,000 in year five. Among the incentives he has, if he coaches Kansas in the NCAA tournament during the term of his contract he will earn a one-year contract extension that’s referred to as “Incentive Year Seven.”

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.