Once an all-star Chanticleer with a .353 batting average, Gary Gilmore now heads into his eighth season as head coach with more passion than ever.

Gary Gilmore in 1979 as a Chanticleer (far left) and with Justin Owens, who was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2002 (right)

Since arriving at Coastal in 1996 after a six-year coaching stint at the University of South Carolina at Aiken, Gilmore has built a highly successful program at an institution that doesn’t have the name recognition of “the bigger schools.” But that’s all changing, thanks to the dedication of Gilmore and his staff, who are making believers out of a lot of people. Gilmore has a 241-167 record at Coastal, which includes three seasons of 40-plus wins.

“I am happy not only that my dream to coach here has come true but that we’ve been able to experience quite a bit of success,” said Gilmore, the 2002 BSC Coach of the Year. “But I don’t feel that the job is done. I truly believe we can make it to Omaha (site of the College World Series) and I am not going to quit until we get there. We have to find a way to raise our level of play to that of the best teams in the nation and show them that a small, mid-major university can make it happen. The players and coaches are on a mission—Omaha or bust. I know we can do it.”

Those strong feelings arise from the fact that Gilmore is a master at finding talented student-athletes. Gilmore, who had a .353 batting average when he was leadoff hitter for the Chanticleers, went on to play in the Philadelphia Phillies organization after graduating from Coastal and then worked as a scout for the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians. He then became a member of the coaching staff at USC Aiken, where he was named head coach in 1990. During Gilmore’s 13-year career as a head coach, more than 60 of his players have signed professional contracts, with seven making it to the major leagues. His Coastal players have also excelled in the classroom, posting a team grade-point-average of nearly 3.0 during each of the last three years.

A Conversation with
Gary Gilmore
Coastal Carolina University Magazine talked with Gilmore on topics ranging from his undergraduate experience at Coastal to his recruiting style to the future of Chanticleer baseball.

What do you remember most about Coastal when you were a student-athlete here?
There were so many wonderful people on campus—as there are today. I think that is what made my heart want to come back to this school so badly. It was the relationships I had, not only with players and coaches, but with professors as well. Everyone was so happy and everything was so very positive. It was unbelievable. That still sticks out in my mind and really made a difference in my life. It was the people and how friendly they were and how they went out of their way to help you. And there is a whole lot of that still here today.

What are your thoughts about coming back to your alma mater and building a successful program?
It was a dream come true for me to have the opportunity to come back here. Some of the fondest memories of my entire lifetime have been on this campus and associated with this university. Our success is the result of a lot of hard work from a lot of different people. We’ve had wonderful players and coaches who have dedicated themselves to the game of baseball and made tremendous personal sacrifices to put this program where it is today.

How have you been able to build such a successful program at a mid-sized school?
I think the school has a lot to sell. We are not the biggest school and we don’t have the most money. I believe in being honest and sincere with the players and parents and telling them that what you see is what you get. You get a wholesome lifestyle here. You get the chance to get a great education. For a smaller school like ours, we have a beautiful facility and it’s improving on a regular basis. I think you have to sell your coaching staff. Granted we are smaller than most programs and are probably on the low end of the budget, but when you look at us as we try to beat the South Carolinas, Clemsons and Georgia Techs, we are just an eyelash away from those programs at this point and time. When we recruit we go out and sell this university and we sell ourselves. Most of the kids that you recruit, they want to come and play for the person who recruits them. There are a lot of head coaches who don’t go out and beat the bushes, they have all their assistants do that. I’ll never take that approach as long as I am physically able. I am going to get out and beat the bushes just like my assistants do. I am going to stay on the road. I like seeing the players.

Talk about the success the program has experienced over the last few years
It’s been a wonderful ride. The last four years have been the greatest four years in the history of the program in terms of wins and losses, championships and things like that. That is a testament to our players, coaches, parents and all our supporters. This program has grown by leaps and bounds nationally and that’s because a lot of people have pitched in and done a lot of things. We’ve all been pulling the wagon in the same direction. When I first came here people told me you can’t go to Coastal Carolina with that little ballpark and have a pitching philosophy, you have to just hit, hit, hit—which had been the philosophy before we came here. We came in and gutted that philosophy and said we are going to win championships and move up in the NCAAs with a pitching-dominated philosophy. And that is what we’ve done. Our pitching staff was eighth in the country this year and we have had a Top 20 pitching staff three of the last four years. Things have been growing and maturing in the right direction. This year’s group of seniors were nurtured for four years. It took a lot of hard work, sweat and dedication on their part to make this all happen.

Former Chanticleer Head Coach John Vrooman, Gary Gilmore and Edward M. (Dick) Singleton, Coastal’s Chancellor Emeritus

Where do you see this program in five years?
I don’t believe it’s realistic to think that Coastal can be in a position that South Carolina and Clemson is in on a yearly basis. I don’t think that can happen. Can we do what South Carolina did this year, playing on national TV for the national championship? I think that is very possible. A lot of things will have to fall into place, but I think we can get there. Baseball is one of the few sports where the size of your school does not necessarily determine the strength of your team. If we can find enough young men who can get on the pitcher’s mound and pitch at the level of the bigger schools, we equal the playing field immediately. One player in some sports, like a great center or point guard in basketball, if they are dominant enough, can level the playing field. That’s hard to do in football and some other big team sports. But in baseball, if a pitcher is good enough and has good players around him, he can level the field in a hurry. For us that is how we have to level it. We may not be as good as the 30 players at South Carolina or Clemson, but as long as we can be as good as the top one through eight or nine players and have several arms that can give you a chance to win, we can compete at that level. We have done that here from time to time.

What are some of the reasons you tell recruits they should attend Coastal?
I want them to have the experience I had here. When they look back, I want them be able to say what a great decision they made to come here and to have the experience I had while I was here. Their love for this institution, not necessarily for just the baseball program, but for the school in general is genuine and unique and is a lifelong love affair between the player and this school and program. The players are our greatest ambassadors. We can recruit the world over, but we are only as good as what our players tell people about us. I feel wholeheartedly that the only way to recruit is for our players to talk to prospective student-athletes when they come to campus. We show the recruit around, they stay with our players and we tell them this is how it’s going to be here. They don’t get put in a $100-a-night hotel. They stay on the couch in a player’s room. We tell them “You live like they live.” If this is not what you want, don’t come to school here. If this is the atmosphere you like and you like our players, then this is what you need to be a part of. For the most part, nine of the 10 guys we go after and really want, we get them. When they walk in they don’t expect things to be different. There are no surprises here. We want kids who are not worried about whether we have a bat contract, but who are concerned about whether the coaches are good, will they help me get better, are we going to be pushed physically in a direction that will help us have the chance to play beyond college. Our kids want to go to Omaha. They know the coaching staff can’t do it by themselves. Our players are a major part of our recruiting plan.

Having played in the minor leagues, what do you tell your players who have been drafted?
It’s their choice, not mine. I would never try to talk a kid out of something that in his heart is what he really wants to do. Even if it’s in their best interest financially to sign, I still feel obligated to leave them the option of continuing their education. If it’s an opportunity that I wouldn’t turn down, I tell them to do it. Bottom line is that every situation is different. As important as your education is, and I believe it should be your first priority, you are only young once. Baseball is a game of age. You are fighting age the day you are born. Teams want every major leaguer to be 18 years old and have a 20-year career. But that just doesn’t happen. After three years of being in college, the majority of kids who have been drafted are going to sign.

What’s your recruiting style?
There is not a rock we won’t turn over, there’s not a trip that’s too long, there is no amount of time away from home that is too much if you’re successful in your recruiting. We spend a large portion of our summers away from home because we go all over trying to find the best recruits possible. With the success we’ve experienced the last few years, we’re now in the hunt for the better kids. Every year we are getting better and better. We’re not just getting better players but we are also getting better students. As proud as I am of our athletic success, I’m even more thrilled about our academic success. As a group our kids were right at a 3.0 GPA for the season and 18 kids out of 30 made over a 3.0 GPA for the spring semester. I have never had that since I have been coaching. I am as proud of that as anything else because that is what it’s all about—kids completing their education and some getting the chance to go on to the professional ranks.